Stony Prompts
by Kamechan98
Summary: Just a bunch of tumblr prompts with Steve Rogers and Tony Stark
1. Just Stay With Me, Please

**Just stay with me, please**

**A/N: This is my first Avengers fic. I have been writing stuff on , but it was all Ninja Turtles stuff so I'm still new to this fandom as far as writing goes. So be nice on me if it turns out terrible. **

**I would just like point out that, while I am pretty good with English (Got an A in English in high school!) I am not native to America or any big English speaking country. So if I get anything wrong, whether it be the language or laws or whatever in America, please let me now, I'm more than willing to learn.**

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"Prompt: Do you want me to leave?"

Having lived in the 21st century for a few years now, Steve could say with his hand on his heart that things were better here. There was so much better food, no need to boil everything and spare every little crumb you could find because of lack of money, though the habit to save food and not waste too much food still hadn't really left him, and probably never would. God, he would never get over the wastefulness of this century. Polio being almost entirely gone and vaccines preventing it was fantastic, and of course the Internet. Nowadays information was so much easier to come by these days, much better than having to look everything up in books or newspapers.

Seriously, thank _God_ for Google.

But the best part of this new future was without a doubt his new friends and this kooky, slightly dysfunctional little family they had built together since the Battle of New York. And sure, they had been awkward around each other at first, even after Tony had generously opened up his home to them all with suits made to suit them all individually and doing all he could to make them feel at home. It had taken time for them all to feel comfortable around each other, to feel like friends more than a group of very different and strong-willed people forced to work together. But, against all odds it seemed, they'd eventually managed to make a connection and become a team. And Steve was really thankful that they were now seeing him less like Captain America; Legendary Hero and American Symbol, and more like Steve Rogers, the kid from Brooklyn who liked to try new foods, movies and books, had a dry sense of humor and wasn't anywhere as sensitive and delicate concerning homosexuality or feminism or other such political subjects that seemed taboo these days.

Natasha and Steve in particular had become really close. Natasha still had moments of acting cold, to all of them besides Clint really, but they both found things to bond over, as they both felt a little isolated in the world due to their pasts, and while she obviously knew more about the 21stcentury than him, they could sit and talk about books, movies, pop culture, history, politics and other subjects that helped Steve learn more about this new world.

Bruce was fairly easy to befriend. Just as long as you didn't go out of your way to provoke him, disturb him while he was working in his lab or mess with his personal items, he was friendly enough and probably the most patient with Steve when he didn't understand a reference or asked too many questions about a subject, which something he could definitely spot in even Natasha's unreadable facial expressions at times. He also started to relax more around them all and seemed much more comfortable and secure in his own skin than he had been when they'd first met on the Helicarrier.

Clint was Clint. He, just like Tony, had moments of being inappropriate and rude and kind of an ass. He liked to pull pranks on his teammates and sometimes didn't think before he spoke, but he was a very good friend. While he had taken more a shine to Tony and Thor, and he and Natasha clearly had a strong relationship even before they joined the Avengers, he and Steve got a long pretty well. And he had certain brutal honesty that Steve appreciated from time to time; given how some people still seemed to walk on eggshells around him when trying to explain things to him. Clint had treated him like he treated everyone around him, right from the start. Steve very much appreciated this.

Thor was very easy to like. It seemed everyone on the team seemed to like Thor, almost impossible not to enjoy his company. There was just something in the way he talked and acted, with such a passion and genuine joy that it sometimes left Steve wondering if Thor was a God or a golden retriever that somehow had turned into a human. He was always enthusiastic about learning more about 'Midgardian culture' and took genuine interest in everything that he found, from video games to movies to Skype, so he could remain in contact with his ' Dearest Lady Jane' while she was still working in New Mexico. And in all honesty, it felt good that there was someone else on the team who still had things to learn about this world, and not just Steve. It gave him someone to talk to about it and discuss new things with who understood.

And then, of course, there was Tony Stark. To say that he and Tony had gotten a rocky start would be an understatement. Even after they apologized for their harsh words on the Helicarrier, there was just something about Tony that had rubbed Steve the wrong way. There was just something about his attitude, this air of I-don't-give-a-fuck that irked him a little. That Tony seemed to think he could do whatever he wanted and didn't care about the consequences. That he didn't have to listen to orders or directions or ideas from others, because 'Fuck you, I'm Tony Stark, I do whatever I want'. And it didn't help that they were oil and water and would get into arguments after every mission.

But, as time went on and they got to know each other better, he started to see Tony, rather than Tony Stark. The Tony who was caring and loyal and generous, just as he was infuriating and obnoxious and an asshole. Who had kept everyone at arm's length for weeks and had taken a bit of coaxing to bring out of his shell, but tried so hard to hide that he was nervous or unsure around them all. Who tried so hard to hide that was caring and generous and kept up a façade of unlikable, narcissistic asshole who wasn't a team player, despite ample evidence to the contrary.

Tony Stark who'd, despite Steve's many attempts to make the stubborn bastard leave him alone to wallow in his own pain and anger and grief by his lonesome, refused to take no for an answer and stubbornly kept at it and eventually managed to break through Steve's tough walls and sneak his way into his heart.

Tony Stark, who Steve loved with all his heart.

So yeah, living in the future wasn't so bad anymore.

Still, that didn't mean he didn't have bad days. Days when he'd wake up from nightmares about the ice, the dark cold surrounding him and leaving him unable to breathe. Nightmares of Bucky falling off the train and to his death in the mountains, just barely missing Steve's hand trying to catch him and save him. Or dreams of Peggy and how his life could've looked like if he hadn't been forced to fly the Valkyrie into the ice and had been able to try to have a life with her. Or if he'd just been able to live in the 40's if the war had never happened at all. Maybe he could've just gone to art school, gotten a job drawing comics or something, met a dame and they could've had a simple life together. No fighting in a war, no super-soldier serum, no crashing into the ice and being thawed out against his will several decades later. No being forced to live in a world that wasn't his anymore. And after he woke up from these dreams or nightmares, the dark thoughts barging in uninvited into his brain and wouldn't leave him alone, sometimes for days on end.

On days like that, when he's dark thoughts just refused to leave him alone, he'd spend them one of two ways. Either he'd stay in his room and refuse to come out, even for food or water, or he'd be in the gym for hours on end to try and fight off those invasive thoughts, until the equipment broke or he collapsed from hunger or physical and mental exhaustion. Usually both.

His friends, to their credit, tried their best to help him when he had these days. Natasha and Bruce had been very vocal about him talking to a doctor and maybe getting some anti-depressants or other medication or help to deal with these thoughts better, and Clint and Thor tried their best to pull him out of his funks by trying to include him in fun games or activities, like playing video games, watch movies or try to play games with the whole team. And while Steve appreciated their attempts and intentions, he usually just wanted to be left alone one days like these, and sometime the team just didn't seem or want to understand.

That was except for Tony.

Tony, more than most people, understood the feeling of wanting to be alone with your thoughts and distracting yourself or dealing with them in your own ways, on your own terms. That when you have dark thoughts or felt depressed to the point of not wanting to eat or get out of bed, the last thing you want is for people to shove their advice or help down your throat or try to drag you away from your feelings. Now, that didn't stop him from bringing him food to their room or the gym and drag him away from whatever he was doing so he could at least eat a sandwich or a few slices or pizza or some soup, or even coaxing him into coming out of join the team for movie night or dinner, just to distract him from his thoughts, if only for an hour or so. And once Steve was out of his funks and 'functioned properly again' he'd say that Steve's coping mechanisms weren't healthy and he might need help, but at least then, he were a little bit more open to the ideas, if only a little.

And truth be told, Tony was the only person- except Natasha _maybe_ \- who could successfully get him out of these funks, if only for a short moment at a time. And while he had learned when to back off when Steve said no and didn't push until Steve lashed out- that had happened once or twice and Tony knew Steve desperately didn't want to hurt anyone, least of all him- Steve had a certain weakness for Tony. That's not to say that he always agreed, sometimes he just wanted to be left alone, with Jarvis playing music he recognized from his time or movies from his time and maybe eat some ice cream or candy while doing it.

Though sometimes… well, very often actually, Tony would stay with him. He'd join him in the gym, either to work out himself or just to keep Steve company or sit down next to Steve on their bed, cuddle up to him and stay there for as long as Steve wanted him to. Which, nine times out of ten, ended with both of them falling asleep in each other's arms. Sometimes, if they were watching a movie, they'd fall asleep before it was over.

It had happened so many times at this point that it was almost like they followed a script, like the words needed to be said, if only because they always said them, but they weren't needed anymore. Whether it be when Tony woke up beside him while he was crying, or came in with a tray of food for him while he was listening to Sinatra, or when he was pounding the stuffing out of his punching bag in the gym with a snack and some water, Tony always seemed to know when Steve would want him to stay or go, but he always asked, regardless if he knew what the answer would be.

"Do you want me to leave? Do you need to be alone right now?"

And Steve's response was often, if not always, to pull Tony into his arms and hold him, tight enough to feel him against his own body, warm and real and alive, but always careful so he wouldn't hurt him. He'd kiss his boyfriend's cheek, nose, eyelids, hair and everything else he could reach, and then press his face into the crook of Tony's neck and whisper as the tears started to fall.

"No. Just… please, stay with me Tony. Stay with me." Tony always nodded into his neck and tightened his hold around his shoulders.

"Always. I'll stay exactly for as long as you want me too."

Steve usually doesn't respond with anything after that; only tightens his grip on Tony and lets himself cry into his boyfriend's shoulder. But he always thinks the same time.

_'Always stay with me, honey. I don't think the future would be half as bearable without you.'_

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**A/N: Okay, that's that. I really hope you like it and I hope to give you more very soon. **


	2. Bedtime

Bedtime

**A/N: I don't really know about this. I tried to write comedy, but I'm not sure I succeeded. Still, these prompts are meant to be practice for me so, what the hell, right? Hope you'll like it!**

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**Prompt: "It's a real shame nobody asked for your opinion."**

Never let it be said that Tony Stark was a lazy person. Sure, he sometimes liked to laze around on his days off spend and as long as he could in bed with Steve and just watch TV on the couch with a pizza for lunch. He was also way more of a morning person than people usually took him for, despite all the jokes that his teammates might make at the breakfast table when Tony dragged himself into the kitchen, still half asleep and clutching his coffee mug like it was the Holy Grail. Which, if you asked Tony, it might as well be considering he was way more protective of his coffee than he was of his own health. Something that really concerned Steve and he usually gave Tony part of his own breakfast, just to make sure Tony ate enough. And who was Tony to say no to his boyfriend's pathetically big, sad puppy-dog eyes? You'd have better luck telling a group of starving orphans that lunch was cancelled for the day.

But no, Tony was not lazy, by any stretch of the imagination. On the contrary, Tony could spend hours down in his workshop working on new tech, weapons for his friends or his armor without even noticing that days had gone by. Or that he needed food or rest.

Again, this was something that really concerned Steve. Sure, he knew that Tony had nothing but the best intentions when he stayed in his workshop three days without breaks. He might deflect and act like it was all because he didn't want anyone's blood on his hands, but Steve knew better. The whole team knew better. Tony still, either out of habit or stubborn pride, worked really hard to cover up his feelings and hide the fact that he cared very much for his friends and wanted them to stay alive. And if he could make sure it happened by making them better armor, weaponry and whatever else they might need in battle, he would do it. Nevermind that he worked himself into the ground while doing it, 'cause his own health wasn't as important as his friends, despite said friends trying to tell him otherwise.

"It's all subconscious." Natasha had said once, rolling her eyes as Tony once again evaded their concern for him and disappeared down into his workshop with a refilled coffee cup. "He's been working hard to get approval from other people all his life, he probably thinks he still needs to do it." She shook her head and sighed tiredly. "идиот." Her voice was tired and frustrated, but also had very soft hints of fondness in there.

Sometimes Steve still found himself amazed by how quick Natasha had, not only changed her view of Tony from her original report on him for SHIELD, but had come to care about Tony like an annoying but lovable little brother. She cared about him a lot and wouldn't hesitate to physically knock him out and carry him to bed, tie him to it and force feed him when he woke up, just to make sure he wouldn't kill himself from lack of sleep and nutrition.

Really, all of them had come to care quite a bit about the genius, as annoying and frustrating as he could be Tony had proven to be very easy to like, once you got past the mile high concrete walls and defenses the genius had built around himself and his heart. And once you got used to his more annoying quirks, like his rambling, his habit of getting too far into people's personal space, or his habit of working too hard, too long and being too stubborn to accept that he might need a break every once in a while. Like to eat and sleep.

Still, Steve took his responsibility to take care of Tony very seriously, and after almost 24 hours of working non-stop it was high time for him to get some sleep. So Steve headed down the stairs towards the workshop, punched in his access code with ease and walked in.

AC/DC was blasting from the speakers at a volume so high that Steve, with his enhanced hearing, winced viciously and almost covered his ears. Almost a year of dating and he still hadn't gotten used to how loud Tony played his music. Or his music.

"Jarvis, lower the music!" His yelling wasn't loud enough to be heard over the music, but Jarvis still lowered the music enough for Steve to relax again. Tony jerked up from his work on in his armor and glared at him.

"How many times have I told you not to turn down my music while I work?" He muttered before he turned back to the boot was currently worked on. And Steve could clearly see he was getting tired, his posture was slightly slumped, he had bags under his eyes and stopped every other second to rub at his eyes. Still Steve shook his head, amused by his boyfriend's grumpiness, and walked up to the table he was working at.

"How many times have _I_ told _you_ not to come to bed at a reasonable time?" Tony rolls his eyes, partly annoyed but mostly distracted.

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard that before. But I'm almost done with the repulsor on this boot, and after that I only have-" Steve rolled his eyes again, a fond smirk forming over his lips and looked at his boyfriend, head tilted slightly to the left and resting his hands on his hips. He chuckles.

"Aw honey, it's cute you think I'm giving you a choice." Tony's head snapped up, his eyebrows scrunched together and his focus suddenly entirely on Steve's words and the tone in Steve's voice but given only a second to figure out what it means for him before Steve grabbed him around the waist, threw him over his shoulder and heads for the door. "Jarvis, let's close up shop for tonight."

_"Of course Captain Rogers."_ Tony was too surprised to react when Steve first grabbed him, but when his brain caught up with what was going around him, he started to kick and squirm and push his hands against Steve's back to try and squirm out of his grip.

"Hey, put me down Rogers! Put me down right now!" Steve smirked.

"Ooh, we're using surnames now, huh? Gosh Mr. Stark, you sure know how to make a fella feel special." Steve barely holds back his laugh as he walks up the stairs, not in any hurry at all, and heads towards their bedroom, holding Tony in place over his shoulder with one arm around the back of his knees.

"Oh fuck off, Steve! I have work to do, let me go!" Steve hummed and pursed his lips, pretending to think about it before smirking mischievously.

"Nah, I think you're done for the day." Tony growled angrily and refused to stop kicking or squirming or writhing in Steve's grip, though it proved to be a very fruitless struggle. To Steve it was like carrying a bag of laundry over his shoulder, except he had to tilt his head slightly to side every now and then to avoid Tony's attempts at kicking him in the face. Whether it would be intentional or not was hard to tell, it was always hard to tell with Tony.

Still, it didn't stop him from trying. That was just how Tony was. Never stop, never quit and never give up, no matter what the odds.

"Steve, this is ridiculous! I have to work on the armor, I don't have time your-" Steve shook his head and threw his boyfriend further up over his shoulder, prompting a yelp out of him.

"Yeah, you probably have work to do. It's a real shame nobody asked for your opinion, though." Tony's only response was a frustrated grunt and an attempt to kick him in the groin but only got him in the stomach, which thanks to his abs was rock-hard and Steve hardly felt a thing.

On their way to the bedroom they passed Natasha and Clint, who were just leaving the gym to go to bed too, but they stopped to smirk and chuckle at the scene of Steve carrying Tony around like a bag slung over his shoulder. An amusing sight but not one too rare these days.

Tony caught their looks and tried to look pleadingly at them, though the effect was slightly ruined by him hanging upside down. "Help? Please?" Natasha just smirked at him and shook her head, her red curls bouncing against her cheeks. Clint laughed at him.

"Nah man, you're on your own. Quite frankly you've only got yourself to blame here." Tony narrowed his eyes at their friends and glared at them as they passed them.

"Traitors." Natasha and Clint just laughed and Natasha called out to Steve

"Make sure he gets at least eight hours, Cap. He promised to spar with me tomorrow." Tony froze in Steve's grip and gulped audibly, either having forgotten about that promise and was now reminded or was just nervous about sparring match on its own. Which was fair when you were going up against the Black Widow.

Steve turned to salute her but didn't stop walking. "Don't worry Nat, I'll make sure he gets a long night's rest." He smirked mischievously and smacked Tony on the butt, making Tony yelp in surprise and outrage. Clint groaned and covered his eyes with one hand.

"Aw man, no. Come on Cap, keep your foreplay in the bedroom, okay?" Tony's head jerked up and he glared at the archer. But before he could say anything, Steve started walking again, turning a corner and their friends were suddenly of sight.

They eventually made it to the bedroom and Steve unceremoniously dumped him on the bed. Tony flailed his arms and legs as he bounced up and down on mattress, then glared up at Steve who was smiling innocently down at him.

"You are not a nice person." Steve chuckled and sat down beside him on the bed. He pressed a kiss to his temple and put an arm around his shoulders, pulling him close despite how Tony tried to pull away. Not very successfully, seeing how Steve was a super solider and was much stronger than an average man.

"Aw, come on baby, don't be like that. You know I love you, but I'm not going to let you go without eating and sleeping. You should know that by now." Tony grumbled and tried to pull away from Steve again, turning his face away when Steve tried to kiss him again.

"Yes, yes, sleep and food is important, I get it but I-" He got cut off by a yawn that threatened to break his jaw, and his eyes drooped slightly. Still, Tony was nothing if not stubborn, so he turned to Steve and poked a finger at his chest. "That meant nothing."

Steve just shook his head at him, kissed his forehead and ruffled his hair playful, laughing at Tony when he tried to bat his hands away. "Sure it didn't, babe." Then he gently grabbed Tony's shirt and pulled it off before throwing it on the floor. Then he got up and kneeled down by Tony's feet and pulled one shoe, and then the other, slowly, and with a very suggestive grin on his face. Tony narrowed his eyes at him, looked away and folded his arms over his chest.

"Nope. Nope, no, I know what you're doing, Rogers. It's not gonna work this time." He tilted his head up, with his nose in the air. Steve just smiled innocently; pulling the socks off his feet before moving up to unbutton Tony's pants and pull them down his legs.

"What's not gonna work, honey?" He looked up at Tony, all big innocent puppy-dog eyes, while pulling his pants of entirely and throwing them to the side. He debated with himself whether or not to take off Tony's t-shirt too, and eventually decided to leave it on for now, and slowly got up and gently pushed Tony down on the mattress before crawling over, positioning himself over Tony, hands placed one both sides of his head, and leaned down to kiss him.

Tony, to his credit, tried to resist and move his face away from Steve's mouth or push at his shoulders to get some space between them. But it didn't take too long for him to give in and start to kiss him back and eventually raise his hands to grab Steve's shirt to pull it off, which was Steve was than happy to let him do. But when Tony's hands found their way to his belt buckle, Steve covered his hands with his own.

"Tony, I brought you here to sleep and that's what we're gonna do." He smirked and pulled Tony's hands away from his belt. "_All_ that we're gonna do."

Tony stared up at him incredulously for almost a full minute before he narrowed his eyes at him. "Seriously? You go out of your way to turn me on just to slam the door in my face?" Steve just looked at him wide eyes and quickly got rid off his own pants and shoes.

"What do you mean? I just helped you undress, that's all." He pulled the covers over them, called to Jarvis to turn off the lights, threw his arm around Tony's waist and pulled his close. "Now sleep." Tony grumbled, but did settle in his arms and on the pillow, allowing Steve to hold him tighter and spoon him.

"Ass." He muttered under his breath and Steve chuckled, pressing a quick kiss to Tony's cheek.

"Love you too, sweetheart. Good night."

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**A/N: And done! Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	3. Candlelight Dinner For Two

Candlelight Dinner For Two

**A/N: So, trying something new this time. This is my first attempt at writing a High School au. Well, in a way, at least in this fandom. What can I say; I'm a sucker for them, even though they can be really cliché. So you can expect more of them in the future.**

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**Prompt: "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were trying to seduce me."**

When Tony got down to the communal floor he could smell that dinner was being made, but there was no chatter coming from the kitchen. Which was always a little weird, considering that Avengers Tower was almost never completely quiet, whether it be Thor and Hulk fighting over cookies, or Clint pulling pranks on anyone else on the team or being chased by the Hulk, or Tony himself blasting music at top volume in his workshop while working. Bottom line, it was almost never entirely quiet in this tower.

Tony had gone to his and Steve's room first, to change out of his suit and into his comfortable jeans and t-shirt before heading into the kitchen to see what was on the menu for the evening. But only seconds after having exited the elevator and before he could head towards the kitchen, he was greeted by Steve, who smiled widely when he saw him and immediately welcomed him home with a soft kiss.

"Welcome home, sweetheart." Tony felt himself melt in Steve's arms and the stress that was still there in his body immediately fade away, and all that was left was his undying love for his boyfriend.

"Hi babe." He pressed a kiss to Steve's cheek before they pulled away slightly, Steve's arms wrapped loosely around Tony's waist. "Greeting me at the door today?" He smiled teasingly and raised an eyebrow up at Steve. Steve grinned at him and kissed him on the forehead.

"I have a little surprise for you."

Tony raised his eyebrows. "Ooh, a surprise? Aw babe, you didn't have to." Steve just smiled, gently let go of him, but he kept an arm around Tony's waist, and started to lead him into the kitchen.

"I just hope you're hungry, babe, 'cause there's a lot of food tonight."

Tony smiled at him and leaned his head on Steve's arm. "I'm starving. I didn't have a big lunch today." Steve shook his head disapprovingly and scowled at him.

"You never do. The fact that you even had lunch today is a once-in-a-blue-moon thing." Tony rolled his eyes at him, but his response died in his throat as they walked into the kitchen.

He was greeted with a candlelight room and the smell of carbonara filled his nostrils, Tony's favorite dish. The table was set, candles were light, a bottle of wine along with wine glasses were placed on the table, along with a big bowl of salad and some garlic bread. Fresh out of the oven too, if the smell was any indication.

Tony stared in awe over the set table, the food and wine, the lit candles and was at a loss for words. "Y-you… you made dinner? This is only dinner for two, what about the others?" Steve shrugged and turned Tony around so they were looking each other in the eyes.

"Well, Clint and Natasha were called in by Fury. Some top-secret mission he wanted them to get to ASAP. Thor is on a date with Jane while she's in town and Bruce is on a seminar about radiation biology and its implications, so…" He placed his hands on Tony's waist with a sweet smile on his face. "since it's just the two of us, I wanted to spoil you a little." He pressed a soft yet lingering kiss on Tony's forehead, then his nose and then his mouth.

Tony felt himself starting to smile without realizing it and had to blink a few times so he wouldn't start crying, 'cause this was such a sweet gesture and such a Steve thing to do and it was so touching to have a boyfriend that went out of his way to make him happy. It wasn't something he was used to from his previous partners, except for Pepper, obviously.

He took a breath and turned to his boyfriend with small smirk. "Well, ain't that sweet of you, babe. I just might keep you around still, Rogers." Steve smirked back and looked down at him.

"Oh, what a relief. Now I won't have to cry myself to sleep at night and worry about you leaving me." Tony smacked him on the shoulder, prompting Steve to laugh, and then grabbed his arm and led him to the table.

"So, what've you got for me, stud?" Steve suddenly looked a little nervous and licked his lips, looking over the table and the plates with food.

"Um, I asked Jarvis what your favorite dish was and he said carbonara, so I looked up recipes for it. But I've never actually made it before so…" He trailed off and bit his lip, and Tony had to hold himself back from going 'aaw' at his boyfriend. He couldn't help it; Steve Rogers was basically a human version of a golden retriever puppy, eager to please and so cute, both when he was happy or sad or nervous.

Instead Tony placed a hand on his cheek and made Steve face him and smiled gently at him. "I'm sure it's great, Steve. It just so sweet of you to make my favorite meal when you've never made it before just to make me happy." He smirked teasingly at him to lighten the mood a little. "Even you are a total sap."

Steve looked mock-outraged at him and turned his nose in the air. "Well, if you're gonna be like that I don't think I wanna cook for you in the future, you've hurt my feelings Stark." Tony smacked him on the arm again and moved towards his chair.

"Well, if you're so hurt I guess I'll just have to eat all alone then." But before he could pull out his own chair, Steve was there and pulled it out for him, making Tony stop and look at him with raised eyebrow. "Really?"

But Steve just looked so earnest and smiled. "Just humor me Tony, will ya?" Tony rolled his eyes but did let Steve pull in the chair for him as he sat down, shaking his head with a smile on his face.

"Dork." Steve smirked, leaned down to kiss him on the cheek and then sat down in his own chair on the opposite side from Tony and gestured to the plates with food.

"Well, help yourself honey." Tony smirked and took two big scoops of spaghetti.

"Don't mind if I do, babe."

The dinner was great, which Tony made sure to say several times to make sure Steve actually knew that Tony liked his cooking and wasn't just saying it to be nice. And the bastard had even gotten dessert; so when the dinner was finally over and done, Tony was quite certain that his stomach was gonna burst. Still, when Steve got to his feet and started to clean up and do the dishes, Tony got up to help, despite how tired and full he felt. Steve insisted that he could do it himself, but Tony insisted right back that he could help. Might help him digest a little faster too.

Thankfully Steve had dealt with most of the dishes from cooking before Tony had gotten there, so most of it was placing plates and cutlery in the dishwasher, dish the stuff that didn't fit in there and putting stuff away, so it didn't take that long. But apparently Steve got impatient after a while, and as Tony was drying the big salad bowl he felt Steve's strong arms wrap around his from behind, his hands on Tony's stomach and his chin resting on Tony's shoulder.

Tony sighed and relaxed almost instantly and he leaned back against Steve's chest, resting his forehead against Steve's neck. "Mm, hello there soldier." Steve didn't say anything, just held him and pressed a kiss to his temple. Tony chuckled a little, gently pulled a little so he could turn around to face his boyfriend, and looked up at him with a smile.

"Okay seriously, what's with all the attention? Where did this come from?" Steve raised eyebrow, looking amused.

"And here I thought you liked attention. Was I wrong to assume that?" Tony shook his head and laughed again.

"Well of course not. You should always pamper me and cater to my every need, that's what you're here for." Steve snorted and shook his head, muttering "in your dreams, Stark." before allowing Tony to continue.

"Don't get me wrong, tonight was great, I loved it. But you know I'd be just as happy if we ordered Chinese or pizza and just chilled on the couch watching TV. So why the sudden desire to impress? Cooking a big dinner with wine and dessert and everything, why? Is today important? Is there a date I have forgotten, because if I have, in my defense, I have told you I am terrible with remembering dates-" Steve shook his head with a chuckle and tightened his hold on Tony.

"No, no, nothing like that. I just wanted to. I mean, does a fella need to have a reason for wanting to treat his best guy to a nice dinner every once in a while?" Tony snorted and shook his head.

"Feeling sappy today, are we Rogers? Well, I appreciate it." He got onto his toes and pressed a kiss to Steve's cheek. "Thank you, honey. This was perfect, just what I needed."

Steve's cheeks flushed a bright red and smiled brightly, if a bit sheepishly and bent down to kiss Tony's cheek in return. "Well, I'm very glad you did. But I was hoping to give you one more thing tonight."

Tony raised his eyebrow, amused and smirked. "My favorite dish for dinner, homemade and everything, dessert, cuddles and kisses and now more? Why Mr. Rogers, if I didn't know better I'd say you were trying to seduce me."

Steve smirked teasingly, but there was something hungry in his gaze, and his hands made their way from around Tony's waist and down towards his butt, slowly and gently stroking his ass. "Why Mr. Stark, whatever gave you that idea?" But before Tony could respond, Steve had cupped his ass and hoisted him up in his arms, making Tony yelp in surprise, giving him a blinding smile. "I'm just giving my best guy the attention he deserves, that's all."

Tony laughed both in surprise and delight, wrapping his legs around Steve's waist and his arms around Steve's neck. He leans in as close as he can to Steve's face, so close that their noses are touching, and whispers into his ear, "Well then, give away, soldier."

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**A/N: And done! Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	4. I Hate The Rain (But I Love Coffee)

I Hate The Rain (But I Love Coffee)

**Finally, a new one! This one was a little tricky to figure out a good scenario for, but I finally came up with one! Though I did alter it just a little, if that's even noticable.**

**Still, I hope you'll like it and please leave a comment, leave kudos or subscribe!**

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**Prompt: "We're in the middle of a thunderstorm and you want to stop and feel the rain?"**

"Hey, come on." Steve tugged on Tony's hand, making him stop staring out at the park and turn to look at him. "Let's just keep walking. It's just a little rain, it'll be fine."

They had been out in Central Park for the last hour, just strolling around in the sun, holding hands and just having a good time together, when suddenly the weather changed seemingly out of nowhere and it started raining like there was no tomorrow. And not too long after that they had seen a flash of lightning and heard the boom of thunder.

Tony had grabbed Steve's hand and ran in under the closest gazebo to shelter them from the rain and then started to shake the rain out of his hair and clothes. Steve just watching him fondly and shook his head amusedly because Tony both acted and looked like a cat right then and there. Which was fairly accurate really, considering Tony hated water, whether it was in the pool back at the tower or it was falling from the sky.

Tony just stared at him incredulously. "We're in the middle of a fucking thunderstorm and you want to stop and feel the rain?"

Steve shrugged with a grin. "Well, why not? It's July, it's not _that_ cold outside." Tony rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Maybe not for you super soldier folk, but us mere mortals don't have bodies like furnaces that keep us warm no matter where we are." He grumbled and sat down on a bench. "I am _not_ going out in the rain with only a blazer and t-shirt on, that is _not_ happening. I'm waiting right here until the rain has stopped."

Steve frowned, put his hands on his hips and tilted his head slightly to the side. "But that could take _hours_. And it's not like it's warmer in here. You're really gonna sit here possibly for hours instead of taking the thirty minute walk back home in the rain?" Tony set his jaw and lifted his chin stubbornly, looking Steve dead in the eye.

"Yes. Yes I am. Do you have a problem with that, Rogers?" Steve sighed and shook his head, partly amused and partly annoyed. While he loved Tony very much and would do just about everything for him, he did _not_ want to stay here in a cold gazebo in Central Park while it was storming around them, possibly for hours. But he didn't want to leave him all alone here either, and Tony was just about as stubborn as Steve himself was, so to get him to walk out of there would be quite a challenge.

Then he got an idea and a smile spread over his face. "Well if you wanna get warm, we could always go and get a coffee." That got Tony's attention and he perked up a little. "We're not too far away from the closest coffeehouse. We could go and stay there until it stops raining. At least we would be warm there."

Tony thought it over, glanced out over the park and it was raining harder and another flash of lightning lit up the sky followed by a boom of thunder shortly after. He turned back to Steve and tried to look just as defiant as he had only seconds ago, but Steve could see he was tempted by this offer and was wavering ever so slightly.

"It's still wet. And cold."

Steve smiled and shrugged off his leather jacket, handing it to Tony. "Here, take this. I know it's not exactly warm, but it might help a little." Tony looked at him with narrowed eyes, then back at the rain and then back at Steve. He groaned and took the jacket, putting it on without looking away from Steve, his glare never wavering.

"You drive a hard bargain Rogers. And you fight dirty, using my love for caffeine against me like this." Steve rolled his eyes fondly and put an arm around his boyfriend's shoulders, hugging him close.

"You mean your addiction for caffeine, right? I swear, sometimes I think you love coffee more than you love me." Tony shoved him playfully with a teasing smirk.

"That's because coffee doesn't drag me away from my work to do boring stuff." Steve rolled his eyes again and chuckled, pressing a kiss to Tony's temple, nuzzling his nose into Tony's hair.

"You mean boring stuff like eating and sleeping?" Tony turned to him and smiled teasingly.

"Yeah, exactly like that." Then his smile turned even more mischievous. "Speaking of coffee…" Then he ripped himself out of Steve's hold on him and ran out into the rain and down the path towards the coffeehouse. The rain and wind was pretty loud, so it was probably only because Steve's super hearing that he heard Tony yelling, "Last one there pays!"

For a few seconds Steve just stood there, too surprised to do anything. Then a determined smirk spread over his face and he took off after Tony. After all, it was one of the things they both had in common: they both liked to win.

It was surprisingly close that Tony won, which was probably due to his head start, but Steve eventually caught up with him, grabbed him around the waist and yanked him back and gently threw him to the side, making him stumble a little. ("Hey!") Which gave Steve enough time to start running again and he got to the coffeehouse first.

Tony came running up to him a few seconds later, soaking wet with his normally well styled, coiffed hair hanging in wet strands in his face and the jacket Steve had lent him dripping with water. He glared half-heartedly at him and flicked some of the rainwater into Steve's eyes.

"Cheater. You are a dirty cheater, Captain." Steve just smiled and tried to look innocent, but it was hard not to start laughing at his boyfriend, who _really_ looked like a soaked cat now. He brushed some of the wet strands of his blonde hair out of his eyes, and had to keep blinking his own eyes to keep the raindrops out of them.

"What do you mean, Stark? You said it was a race and I won fair and square. What's the problem?" Tony's eyes narrowed even further and folded his arms over his chest, pouting in that way that Steve found so adorable.

"One of these days I am going to prove to the world that Captain America is a dirty little shit, see if I don't, you jerk." Steve just smiled and wrapped his arms around Tony's waist.

"Yeah? Well, while you work on that…" Then he leaned down, raised his hands gently and cradled Tony's face in his hands, stroking his thumbs over his cheeks. "Maybe I could treat my best fella to a coffee? Maybe a treat?" Tony looked up at him with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.

"Oh, you'd better be paying for this. You made me go out in the rain and now I'm wet and cold and then you threw me-" Steve just chuckled and pressed a kiss to Tony's lips, effectively shutting him up. His lips were cold and it did feel a little unpleasant at first, but when Tony started to kiss him back and wrapped his arms around Steve's neck (also very cold and wet, _brr_!) they had started to warm up a little and Steve wrapped his arms around Tony again and pulled him as close as he could.

Steve couldn't really tell how long they were kissing, but when they finally pulled away, they were so wet that he worried if they were even going to be allowed inside the coffeehouse, because there was not a dry spot on either of them. Fortunately Steve wore a t-shirt under his sweater, or it might been a very cold coffee date, even for his 'furnace body' as Tony had dubbed it.

Still, Steve opened the door for Tony and gestured inside. "Shall we?"

Tony smiled and shook his hair to get rid of as much water as he could before walking inside, taking Steve's jacket off and shaking it off too. "Let's."

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**A/N: ****I love writing fluff. It's just so sweet and a nice substitute, since I'm trying eat less sugar.**

**I hope you'll like it and please leave a comment, leave kudos or subscribe!**


	5. Tiberius Stone is an Ahole

Tiberius Stone is an A**hole

**A/N: So, sorry it's been a while since I published anything, but I have been busy with other stuff and dealing with Writer's Block. But here I am with another prompt and I hope you'll like it.**

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**Prompt: "I need you to forgive me."**

Steve didn't need to look up when he heard the elevator doors open and close to know that Tony had come home, but he couldn't fight the smile from spreading across his face.

"Hi honey! How was your night?" He looked away from the TV and at his husband, who was stilling standing by the elevator. But his smile wavered slightly when he saw how stiff Tony looked. He didn't smile, he didn't come over to the couch to kiss Steve and start a rant about how annoying rich people are. He just stood there, with a strange look on his face.

"I need you to forgive me." Steve frowned, both confused and startled by the words that came out of Tony's mouth. He sat up on the couch, turned off the sound on the TV and directed all of his attention on Tony. He examined Tony as closely as he could without making it too obvious that he was. He didn't want Tony to feel like he was being scrutinized. He didn't look drunk, or even like he had that much to drink at all, in fact- now that Steve looked a little closer- he looked like a mix between a deer caught in the headlights and a child waiting to be scolded.

"What's wrong, love?" He kept his voice soft and concerned, hoping it might help Tony ease up a little, but he still stiff and didn't move from his spot by the elevator.

Tony had been out for only a few hours at yet another PR Event, promoting Stark Industries and all the new directions he wanted to take or projects they had started up, which had meant that the rest of the Avengers had not been needed, which all of them saw as a relief. Clint hated any affair where he needed to wear a tux or a tie, whining about how they were restrictive and he couldn't breathe. Bruce felt incredibly uncomfortable at social events like these and usually ended up in a corner somewhere, trying to make himself invisible. Thor didn't necessarily dislike these events, he could easily entertain other guests with tales of Asgard or the many great battles he had been fighting in before ever coming to Earth, but he still didn't always know how to act or speak with these people and had sometimes ended up unintentionally insulting or lightly injuring others in his attempts to convey engaging storytelling. Natasha was the only one who knew how to act at these things, on the same level as Tony did, but it was still clear that she did not like spending her time around stuck-up rich people.

"It's hard enough to deal with Stark, I don't need more of his kind." She had said once, but it had been with a very, tiny curve of her lip, which was as close to a teasing smirk you could get out of Natasha. Tony had played up the 'hurt and wounded' act he always did when someone on the team teasingly insulted him or called him out when he was being silly, but he too had been sporting a small smirk.

The only one who had any real reason to be at those galas or events would be Steve. As Tony's husband, it only made sense that he would accompany him to these things, to support him and help promote good press for the company. And while Steve had made no secret to either Tony or Pepper that he hated dressing up and entertaining these kinds of people- reminded him way too much of time promoting war bonds with the USO- he would gladly put up with it to support his husband and to just see how happy Tony got when got to talk about his projects to the world. Steve had told Tony over and over that he hated his PR smile, but he loved it when Tony could just talk about his work, because that passion always managed to shine through and it was a joy to see, even if he was forced to suffer through stiff greetings and small talk with people he couldn't bother remembering the names or after they left for the night and to wear those tight, uncomfortable suits. All to make Tony happy and to see that bright smile when he took the stage and talked about the things he really cared about.

But right now Tony wasn't smiling, not even a little. His expression was a little hard to read, Steve couldn't quite pin down what Tony was feeling at the moment, aside from a hint of fear and shame, which made Steve worry about what had happened tonight. Steve and Tony had planned for the both of them to be there, but due to Fury dropping a mission on him and Natasha a few days prior; Steve had found himself busy with writing a mission report he needed to have finished by tomorrow. And Steve had been more than happy to avoid another night at a PR event, and once he finished had found himself on the couch, relaxing and watching TV until Tony came home. But now he was worrying about what had happened that made Tony look like that.

Tony refused to look him in the eyes, he kept his head down and stared at his shoes, or the carpet, or the TV remote, or anything that wasn't Steve. So Steve got up, walked up to Tony, took his hand and gently brought him over to the couch and they sat down, Steve still holding on tightly to Tony's hand.

"Tony? Sweetheart, what's wrong? What happened that I need to forgive you for?" Tony squirmed uncomfortably under Steve's gaze, the hand that Steve wasn't holding clenched tightly. He took a breath, visibly bracing himself before looking up at Steve, a few strands of hair hanging over his face.

"… You remember I told you about Ty, right?" Steve felt himself tense up for a second, his grip on Tony's hand tightening slightly. Oh yes, Tiberius Stone, Tony's ex from MIT. Tony had told Steve about him a few months after they started dating. He had told him that Ty had seemed like a really cool guy, smart and strong and driven, but always affectionate and caring. He had swept Tony off his feet from the first second, and Tony- being a naïve fourteen-year-old- had believed it was true love. That it was meant to be. Only to eventually realize that Ty was abusive and controlling and clearly didn't care about Tony's well-being or security. And while Tony had never outright said it, he had implied that Ty had forced him to have sex before he felt ready or comfortable.

In shorter terms, Steve hated the guy's guts, despite having never actually met him, and had told himself it was best for Ty that they never did meet, because he might actually kill him if he did.

He nodded and tried to calm down. Tony was upset about something and the most important thing was to make sure he felt safe and comfortable with telling Steve what happened. "Yes, I do. Why?"

Tony took another breath, but he broke their eye contact, looking down his shoes again. Steve didn't say anything about it, just squeezed Tony's hand reassuringly. "H-he… he showed up at the event. I-I didn't know he was gonna be there. And from what Pepper told me, it didn't sound like he was invited. He might've been a plus one for someone, or he snuck in somehow, I don't know…"

He trailed off, biting his lip and closed his eyes, taking a few breaths through his nose, held them for a second before letting out through his mouth. Steve didn't push him, just waited for Tony to pull himself together enough to continue. Eventually he opened his eyes again, but still refused to look at Steve.

"I was done with my speech and went over to the bar to get a drink. Pepper came over and said I did great, we talked a bit before she went off to mingle. Then…" Tony closed his eyes again and shuddered, so subtly that Steve almost missed it. "then he was just there, like he appeared out of thin air. And he wanted to talk."

Tony pressed his lips together, took another breath and his voice sounded a little strained. "I tried to make it as clear as possible that he wasn't wanted, that I wanted nothing to do with him. B-but whatever I said or did, he just wouldn't leave me alone. He tried to buy me a drink, I said no. He asked me questions about how I'd been doing and stuff, I gave short and rude responds. He kept… he kept _touching_ me, even when I made it clear that I didn't want his hands on me. An arm around the shoulders or trying to hold my hand, he just wouldn't _stop_."

Steve's eyebrows drew together, suddenly feeling that old, familiar urge to punch something- or in this case _someone_\- rise in his chest, 'cause he started to get an idea of where this was going and he didn't like one bit. But he made sure to keep his face reassuring and gentle, despite how hard it was getting to keep it like that. He squeezed his husband's hand, being very careful not use his super-human strength to accidentally crush the bones in Tony's smaller, frailer hand.

"Tony…" Tony was blinking suddenly, rapidly and several times, and it clicked in Steve's brain that Tony's many deep breaths and sudden blinking was him trying his hardest to not start crying. Though it was a rather fruitless attempt, as his eyes looked a little shinier and his voice was shaking a little now.

"H-he wanted to c-catch up somewhere, for o-old times sake. I-I said that I wasn't in-interested, that my h-husband was e-expecting me home soon, and I t-tried to w-walk away. B-but then h-he grabbed me and k-kissed me."

A few tears finally managed to slip out of the corners of Tony's eyes and his shaky voice was interrupted with a few sobs. "I-I… I s-swear S-Steve, I-I wanted t-to f-fight him off. I-I d-didn't want him to touch me or kiss me, bu-but i-it w-was like I was f-fourteen years old again, I-I just… c-couldn't. It w-was like m-my own b-body stopped w-working and I-I couldn't get away o-on my own-"

Steve had heard enough. He released Tony's hand and placed his arms around Tony, pulling him close and held him tightly. Tony buried his face into Steve's shirt, now sobbing uncontrollably and his arms wrapped around Steve's stomach, clinging to him like a child and between his shuddering breaths he cried out 'I'm sorry' into Steve's chest, over and over again.

Steve just shushed him gently, keeping one arm tightly wrapped around Tony's shoulders while the other one was stroking his back, doing his best to comfort his distraught husband. But inside, there was a raging battle between his anger and rational thinking. The soldier in him wanted to march right out into the city, find that sleazy scumbag of an ex-boyfriend and beat the shit out of him. It was nothing less than he deserved and nothing could convince Steve otherwise. But the more rational guy in him bashed the soldier part of him over the head and reminded him of his crying, hysterical husband who was begging for forgiveness into his chest, who really needed reassurance and comfort above karmic retribution.

_'Priorities, Steve. Get your priorities straight, soldier.' _He chided himself, though it took almost herculean effort to push the thoughts of revenge and retribution and hatred into the back of his mind so he could put all his focus on making sure Tony was okay.

So he just hugged Tony as tightly as he could, gently shushing him, placing kisses everywhere he could reach and placed one hand in his hair, stroking it in the way he knew Tony loved and calmed him when he was upset. He had made jokes in the past that Tony was like a cat, loving to be petted and pampered by everyone and Tony had acted insulted and smacked Steve on the arm in mock-outrage, though there had been a little smirk on his face regardless. But at times like these, Steve was happy that it really helped calm him down when he was this upset. So he kept stroking his husband's hair, hugged him tightly to this chest with the other arm and talked softly to him, words that meant nothing but were meant to be soothing and help him calm down.

Eventually Tony gently pulled away from Steve's chest and seemed to have calmed down, though there were still a few sniffles and he rubbed at his eyes and nose. His eyes were red and still wet with tears, but he was breathing a little easier now and his sobbing had subsided.

Steve kept his arm around Tony, now resting around his waist and he kept him close, ready to hug him again if he needed it. "You feeling better?" He asked softly and Tony nodded, but he didn't say anything. He breathed through his nose and kept his mouth shut long enough for Steve to worry about it, but after a few minutes of silence he looked up at Steve and his big, wide and wet puppy eyes made Steve's heart ache.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to- I never wanted to-" Steve shushed him again and pressed a kiss to Tony's temple.

"Hush now, honey. This _isn't_ your fault. He has a grip on you mentally and psychologically, and after what he did to you, it makes complete sense that you'd still be wary of him. He didn't listen when you dismissed him, and that is not your fault. It's _never_ your fault when something like this happens."

Tony looked away, looking very ashamed and guilty. "I just… I feel like I've cheated on you." He whispered the words, so quietly that if Steve hadn't had his enhanced hearing he probably wouldn't have heard it. But he did, and he immediately kissed Tony again, on the forehead, then the nose and then his mouth.

"You didn't. If you had cheated on me, you wouldn't have tried to avoid it all from happening and you wouldn't feel this bad about it. You don't have to worry about any of that, I know how loyal and faithful you are Tony; I would never assume you would cheat on me. You love me and I love you, till the end of time, remember?"

Tony didn't look entirely convinced, he still looked a little wary and like a scared woodland creature, which just made Steve's heart ache even more. He grabbed Tony by the shoulders, not tightly but firmly enough to catch Tony's attention, and made him look him in the eyes. "Tony, you love me, right?"

Tony looked surprised, a little scared suddenly, but he nodded nevertheless. "More than anything."

Steve smiled and loosened his grip on Tony's shoulders slightly; really he was just resting his hands there now. "Right. And I know you do, you accepted my proposal and married me. I know you love me, you show me that every single day with everything you do. Christ Tony, everything I have in this century is thanks to you. My friends, my job, my home, it's all thanks to you. You gave me a home, Tony, a family and your love. I couldn't ask for more, so how can you possibly believe that I would think you'd cheat on me, with Tiberius Stone of all people?"

Tony looked up at him, looking more like a puppy than before, and swallowed unsurely. "So… you're not mad?" Steve gently smiled, placed a hand under Tony's chin and lifted his face slightly, placing another kiss on his lips.

"Not at you, Tony. _Never_ at you. Not for something like this. I'm furious at him; I want to punish him for making you feel like this and being this scared to tell me what happened. But I will never be mad at you because some guy comes up to you and forces himself on you."

And finally there was a small smile forming on Tony's face and he rested his head on Steve's shoulder, pressing a kiss to the crook of his neck. "I love you."

Steve smiled affectionately, placed his arm around Tony and rested his head against Tony's. "And I love you too, sweetheart. And no Tiberius Stone can ever change that, I hope you realize that." Tony huffed a very small laugh but nuzzled his face further into his shoulder and neck and wrapped his arms around Steve's waist, holding him tight.

They sat like that for a while, wrapped up in each other's arms, just being together and loving each other's company. Then, after a few minutes of silence…

"If I ever see him, can I punch him?"

"No Steve, you can't punch him. He's a squishy human, your punches crush steel, it's out of the question."

"Oh come on, he's a piece of shit anyway, can't I just punch him? It's nothing less than he deserves!"

"No, Steve. I will not have the media go crazy over Captain America punching a civilian and putting him in the hospital. Pepper would kill us both and you know it."

"Damn, you're right. Fuck!"

Tony laughed and shook his head at his husband's antics and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Steve's small frown melted away and he nuzzled his nose against Tony's in an Eskimo kiss, wrapping both arms around Tony, placing his chin on top of his head. Then Tony yawned and slumped against Steve's chest, suddenly exhausted. Which, considering the emotional rollercoaster his evening had been, wasn't really surprising.

He yawned again but tried to cover it with his hand. Steve smiled at him and stroked his hair. "You tired, love?" Tony, of course, shook his head and tried to act as if nothing happened, which was slightly ruined as another yawn left his lips. Steve chuckled and slowly pulled away from the hug.

"You should go to bed, honey. You're tired and I won't have you go back down into your workshop and work yourself into the ground again."

Tony grumbled and rubbed his eyes before stretching out his arms towards Steve like a child. "Carry me." He whined, again, very much like a child.

Steve rolled his eyes with a fond smile, but he shut off the TV before gathering up Tony in his arms, bridal style and started to make his way towards their bedroom. Tony wrapped his arms around Steve's neck and rested his head against Steve's shoulder, sighing in content and Steve had to shake him every now and then to make sure he would fall asleep in his arms.

Once he had managed to get Tony ready for bed, helping him remove his makeup and get out of his tight suit, while Tony managed to wake up enough to brush his teeth and get into his pajamas, they found themselves together in bed and wrapped up in each other's arms. Tony was out like a light less than a minute after lying down, with his head resting on Steve's chest. Steve had his arms wrapped tightly around Tony's waist, keeping him in place and pressed a few kisses to Tony's cheek, nose and head before settling down to sleep as well.

But before he fell asleep, he found himself chuckling slightly. _'Tony cheating on him with Ty? Hah, as if.'_

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**A/N: And done! Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	6. Love At First Near Drowning Incident

Love At First Near Drowning Incident

**A/N: So, trying something new this time. This is my first attempt at writing an Alternate Universe, and I'm taking a stab at College/University and No Powers. Hopefully it's good, 'cause this idea came to me while writing the previous one and I really wanted to do it. **

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**Prompt: "You're safe now, I've got you."**

In hindsight, Tony guesses it was just his luck that something like this happened on the first day of his vacation. He'd have such rotten luck since, well _forever_, that it just made sense that he'd almost kill himself on his time to recuperate.

He was visiting his grandparents in Positano, Italy, since they refused to ever visit him and his parents in America. And having just been released out of MIT for the summer, his _nonna_ had been very quick to invite him to their house for the summer so they could spend some time together, as his parents were off to Tokyo for a business trip and would then fly to the Bahamas for a few weeks of vacation. And since Rhodey was going to spend his summer in LA with Carol and he didn't want to spend his summer alone, he figured it'd be good to spend his summer vacation in this peaceful little village.

Peaceful? Hah!

Tony had been taking a small walk along the docks down by the harbor, taking in the clear blue water and colorful houses and warm bright sun. There were plenty of boats there too, most of them preparing for a full day of fishing or taking tourists out for tours to hidden beaches or other places around the coast. Tony had smiled, closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nose, taking in the scents of salt water and felt in his bones that _'This. This is home.'_

And it was probably because his eyes were closed and his mind was elsewhere that it all came as such a surprise when he suddenly felt someone bump into him, pretty roughly too. It took him so by surprise that he ended up tripping over his own feet, stumbled over a long, taut rope that was keeping a boat tied to the dock and he fell into the water with a small yelp.

Tony had never been a particularly good swimmer. He had learned, obviously he had learned to swim, but he had never been too fond of swimming or water in general. So when he had fallen in, it had taken him a good few seconds to get his body to start moving and start paddling towards the surface. And once he managed to get his head above water, he'd felt that the cuff of his jeans was caught on something and he couldn't yank it free. And because of how deep it was and the fact that it was his cuff that was stuck, he could barely keep his head above the water. As he tried to pull his leg free and keep himself afloat with his arms, waves kept splashing into his face, mouth and eyes, making him swallow or accidently inhale salt water, which made him cough and splutter and made it much harder to keep his head above the water or avoid new waves, never mind calling for help.

In his swelling waves of panic, he heard a loud splash somewhere to his left, but he couldn't see anything because of the saltwater splashing in his eyes. But he felt someone grab his ankle and yank on it and suddenly his leg was free and he started kicking and wave with his arms to stay afloat. Then he felt arms grabbing him around the chest, slightly under his armpits and hold him steady, despite him kicking and flailing wildly without being able to see, while still gasping, spluttering and coughing in wild panic.

"It's okay. It's alright, you're safe. You're safe now, I've got you."

The voice was calm and collected, though there was a subtle undertone of fear in there too. He felt himself being pulled in one direction; one of the arms that held him let go of him while the other one held him steady. Tony started to relax and had stopped kicking and flailing, though he was still blinded and his eyes stung. And he jumped slightly when he felt his savior grab him in a rougher kind of bridal carry, but he barely had time to react before the guy heaved him up and onto the dock again.

For the first few minutes Tony was lying there, spluttering and coughing up saltwater and trying to wrap his brain around what had just happened and how fast it had happened. It all couldn't have been more than five minutes, tops, but it had felt like an eternity before he was finally back up on dry land.

He felt a hand on his back, patting firmly to help him cough up the water and probably reassure him. "Hey, hey, it's okay man. You're alright, just cough it all up." The voice was gentle, if a little awkward, but his presence did help a little.

He heard another splash and through his closed eyes saw someone block the sun for a few minutes, and felt another hand, on his shoulder this time.

"Are you alright?" The voice sounded very worried- and very American- but Tony was still coughing up water, but when he finally felt like he could breathe and his eyes didn't sting so much anymore, he blinked a few times and looked up at his savior and-

Hellooo biceps. And triceps. And abs. And pretty much every other part of his body.

The guy was fucking gorgeous! He had the body of a Greek God (or would that be a Roman God, considering they were in Italy?); he was tall, well-built and strong with muscles in places Tony didn't know existed. And the fact that his clothes were wet and clung to his body in just the right ways and showed of his muscles perfectly certainly didn't help Tony's staring. His hair was blonde- though it was lying flat against his head and face now, and shone like gold in the sunlight and his eyes were as blue as the ocean below them. Which Tony might have found ironic if he wasn't so captivated by how handsome this guy was.

The guy though probably took Tony's long silence as him not know English, because he suddenly looked a little wary and looked like he was trying hard to remember something, before speaking again, this time in Italian. "Uh… _Parli inglese?_"

His Italian wasn't terrible, though his pronunciation was weak and a little stilted. It was clear this guy was a tourist and knew very little Italian other than a few necessary phrases that he needed to know. Tony huffed a small laugh, prompting another coughing fit and got up on his knees, brushing wet strands of hair out of his eyes and looking back at the Adonis in front of him.

He coughed again and cleared his throat before he finally started to talk. "You're… you're American." It sounded more like a statement than a question, which was what he had intended it to be, but the Adonis seemed more surprised by the fact that Tony did in fact speak English and what he said than how he said it, so it didn't bother him too much.

He straightened up and rubbed the back of his neck a bit sheepishly. "Oh. Uh, yeah. I'm here on vacation with my friends." He pointed over at the guy behind Tony, who Tony had kinda forgotten about despite his hand on his back. The guy was also pretty buff, only a few inches or so shorter and had shaggy, shoulder-long hair and dark blue eyes. He smiled wryly and removed his hand from Tony's back.

"Hey. I'm Bucky, and this lug's best friend." Bucky? What kind of a name was that? But Tony didn't really want to ask and just nodded with a weak smile. Bucky was standing on his knees but was now standing up. "You okay now?"

Tony nodded and had finally stopped coughing. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." He turned back to the Adonis, smiling wryly again. "You didn't exactly learn Italian in High School, did you?"

He smiled sheepishly and rubbed his hand on the back of his neck, a soft red blush coloring his cheeks. "Uh, I… no. No I didn't, I took French. I don't really know that much Italian."

Tony smirked lightly, eyebrow raised in amusement. "Yeah, I can tell."

He then smiled more genuinely and stroke his wet hair out of his face. "Well, I guess I owe you a thank you for saving my life just now."

The Adonis smiled and then slowly got up on his feet, reaching out his hand for Tony to take and Tony gladly took it and let the Adonis help him stand up. Then he went back to looking kinda sheepish and a little guilty.

"Uh, well in that case, I guess I owe you an apology for bumping into you like that. I wasn't looking where I was going and… well, I walked into you, I guess." He tried to smile, but it looked very strained and unnatural. He then also seemed to realize he was still holding Tony's hand because he dropped it very quickly. "I'm… I'm really sorry. Are you okay?"

Tony smiled reassuringly, if a bit cockily, and stroke his hair out of his eyes again. He folded his arms over his chest, leaning on his leg and looking into his big blue eyes.

"Hey, it's cool. I'm alright, no harm done. And I would say it wasn't so terrible, 'cause now I'm talking to you, Handsome."

Steve looked a little surprised at how forward Tony suddenly was and how quickly he had brushed the whole almost-drowning-thing off, but his smile looked more natural now and he took a step forward.

"Yeah? Well, I'm happy to be of service in any way I can, mister." Bucky groaned somewhere behind Tony, either out annoyance or because of how corny the line was.

"Oh Jesus, Steve you really gotta work on your flirting." The Adonis- or Steve- blushed even more and glared over at his friend, but Tony just smirked and took a step forward as well, shrugging off his wet, thin jacket, showing off his own well-defined arms and tan. And his smirk widened slightly when he saw how Steve's gaze was suddenly drawn away from the best friend and was now directed at his body. Though the blush was still there.

"So tell me, Blondie, do you spend your vacations saving people from drowning or am I just lucky?" Steve smirked back and put his hands in his sides.

"Well no, not that often. I guess you're just special."

"Ooh, I'm flattered."

Bucky rolled his eyes with another groan. "Well, I guess I'm not needed anymore. I'm gonna go check out what Natasha's up to." He turned to glare at his friend. "Maybe _she_ can actually pay _me_ some attention." Then he walked away and Steve just waved him off.

"Later, Buck."

They both laughed at their corny flirting and bizarre the whole thing had been, then the guy reached a hand for Tony to shake with a more comfortable smile.

"I'm Steve Rogers."

Tony smiled back and shook his hand. "Tony Stark." If Steve recognized the name Stark, he certainly didn't show it, he just smiled and tucked his hands into his pockets.

"Well then, Tony, could I maybe treat you to some Gelato? As an apology for pushing you into the water." Tony smirked at him and a small laugh escaped his lips.

"Well I was kinda hoping I could treat _you_ to some Gelato. As a thank you for saving me from drowning." Steve smiled, and damn, that smile was way more breathtaking than any smile had any right to be.

"I'll pay yours and you'll pay mine?" Tony chuckled and, despite still being soaking wet and his heart was still kinda pounding from the almost drowning incident, he felt totally date ready.

"It's a date."

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**A/N: And done! Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	7. Tony Gives Steve A New Best Friend

Tony Gives Steve A New Best Friend

**A/N: So, I've been writing Avengers Assemble in the fandom field every time I've published a fic on here, but this is first that is explicitly in the AA Universe. But there isn't anything mentioned in this fic that you need to have watched the show in order to understand this. The only thing that might good to mention is that Bruce is the Hulk all the time so he's not really in the show except for a few episodes, and that Sam is a teenager and also a tech genius that Tony took under his wing. Aside from that you're good.**

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**Prompt: "I got you a present."**

Steve had never cared much for his birthday.

It's not really easy to care much for your birthday when it's on the Fourth of July. Especially after becoming Captain America and people had learned that his birthday was, in fact, on Independence Day and it became almost as big a spectacle as the celebration of the country.

As if it wasn't enough being painted up as The All-American Hero who always fought for the underdog and sacrificed his life for his country, he also needed to be born on the freaking Independence Day.

With every passing year, Steve disliked the spectacle around the Fourth of July and his birthday more and more. But ever since coming out of the ice and joining the Avengers, it became clear that simply ignoring his birthday and spending it however he wanted simply wasn't an option anymore. Especially since Tony was always looking for an excuse to throw a party and spend ridiculous amounts of money on frivolous things.

Seriously, the fact that there were people in this century that spent thousands of dollars on birthday parties made Steve's skin crawl.

And so Steve accepted that his friends wanted to celebrate him, though made it clear he wanted to celebrate it in his own way, usually just with a couple of friends, some good food and beers, maybe a few movies. And since Tony always tried to get him super expensive gifts, he made a rule that if his friends wanted to give him gifts, it would have to cost under 100$. It had irked Tony something fierce but Steve was firm on this point, even after he and Tony got together and eventually married.

It wasn't that Steve didn't like getting presents, but it had always been rare for him to actually get something when he was young due to being poor and starving and all money he and his mother got needed to go to necessities rather than personal things. Bucky was the only one he got gifts from, but he wasn't exactly rich either so it was never anything fancy. And so, suddenly receiving not only many gifts, but also very expensive gifts from friends and newfound family made him rather uncomfortable. And even as the Avengers became more family than friends, he still preferred to keep the rule in place and was fine with receiving books or art supplies or clothes, since one of the few things Tony and Natasha agreed wholeheartedly on was that Steve had a dreadful sense of fashion.

Still, Tony always tried to sneak around this rule and test the limits as much as he could without making Steve yell at him. At first he had tried to ignore the rule and bought whatever he wanted to give him, but once he seen how uncomfortable Steve got and Steve explained why he wanted the rule there, he was more accepting to it. But that still didn't stop him from trying to push the envelope as much as he could. Like that one time when he took Steve on a picnic with fancy food and looking over the Washington DC celebration from afar, somehow having only cost 100$. Steve wasn't sure how he had managed to pull that off, but he showed receipts and everything so he couldn't argue. Besides, it had been a really lovely evening, so who was he to complain?

There had also been a time when Tony had had gotten him this great set of really good colors and brushes second hand that were pretty much unused and couldn't possibly have cost 100$.

"It was a steal, really." Tony had shrugged when he showed the receipt when Steve had questioned him. "I don't think they realized how much they could've charged for it all."

Then of course was the time he had proposed to Steve, with a ring he had made with materials from his armor and Steve's shield. The 100$ had gone to the food and drinks for celebration.

Steve had more or less gotten used to this and he was very touched to have a boyfriend who cared about him and wanted him to have good presents for his birthday. And after they got married it meant so much more that his husband loved him so much, and did consider letting up on the rule a little and maybe raise it to 500$, just for Tony.

Then came the day of his 100th birthday. Which of course would be a big deal no matter what he said or did, because becoming 100 years old and not be a frail, weak and wrinkly old man was quite a feat. And so he resigned himself to his fate that Tony would go out of his way to get him some kind of extravagant gift and maybe even discard the rule entirely in order to spoil him.

However, what actually happened did leave him pleasantly surprised.

They had all been sitting in the living room, each with their own activities to keep themselves occupied, Thor and Hulk were playing video games, Natasha was dying her nails and Clint had somehow roped Sam into a game of darts with him. Steve had been keeping himself busy with crosswords when Tony came into the room with a wide grin on his face.

"Hey babe." He sat down on the armrest of the couch and kissed Steve's temple. "So, I know it's early, but really can't wait till tonight, so… I got you a present."

Natasha looked up from her nails; eyebrow raised in slight curiosity and put down her nail polish. "Well, this oughta be good." Thor and Hulk also looked away from the TV and Clint stopped mid-throw with the dart still in his hand.

Steve rolled his eyes and put the magazine down and looked up at Tony, trying to look annoyed but couldn't help the fond amusement he was feeling. "Okay, so what did you do this time?" Tony gasped in mock offence and pulled away with a hand over his arc-reactor.

"Uh! And what is that supposed to mean? What makes you think I've done anything at all?" Steve huffed a small laugh and looked Tony right in the eyes.

"Gee, I don't know, maybe that you always seem to have planned something for my birthday. Like that time you planned that picnic in DC, somehow with great view but away from all the people so we could be alone without fans coming up all the time? Or when you got me free passes for the Museum of Modern Art for a whole year, while also having hired the place for the night and arranged a dinner date? Or when you proposed to me? Are you seriously telling me you haven't planned something for today, when I officially turn 100 years old?"

Tony blushed a little as he got the many extravagant gifts listed up for him, but waved it off and smirked his usual confidant smirk. "Well, obviously I've got a big gift for you! What kind of husband would I be if I didn't? Becoming a centenarian is a big deal. But this one I know you will love, I guarantee it."

Steve's annoyance softened a little and smile became more genuine. He placed his arm around Tony's shoulders and pulled him close, off the armrest and into his lap. "If it's from you, I know I'll love it. "

Clint rolled his eyes and gagged behind them. "Ugh, come on guys, if you're gonna be all gross like that can you at least go to the bedroom?" Tony just flipped him off without looking away from Steve, pressing a kiss to his nose.

"Fuck off, Barton." Then he got off Steve's lap. "Okay, I'm gonna go get the gift, but first you have to close your eyes." And, okay, that was a little weird. So, if he had to close his eyes Tony probably hadn't wrapped it. And if he hadn't wrapped it, what could he have planned this time?

He raised an eyebrow at Tony, probably looking really suspicious. But Tony just smiled and shrugged. "It's a surprise! I don't want you to ruin it. Just humor me, will you?"

It didn't answer any of Steve's questions, but he just rolled his eyes before closing them. He heard Tony walking towards the door and heard him say, "Don't let him cheat" before he walked out of the room.

"I never cheat, Tony!" He yelled after him, still with his eyes closed. He heard Clint snort from somewhere behind him.

"Yeah sure Cap, just like you didn't cheat when we played Risk last Game Night. Or when he played Monopoly the week before. Or when we play poker, or Twister or any game that we have ever played. You're not fooling anyone Cap, you're just as big a cheater as the rest of us."

"Indeed, Captain. You have been known to bend the rules when we engage in Midgardian games. Perhaps we should change the purpose of the games to see who can cheat the best." Thor said somewhere to his left, sounding pretty amused.

Steve just shrugged and smirked. "Not my fault if you're bad at board games, guys. You play it to win it." Sam laughed and he could practically hear Natasha smirk and roll her eyes, which really goes to show how long he's known her that he knows how she reacts without even seeing her.

Hulk just grumbled. "You gonna keep playing, Goldilocks?" And then the sounds of the TV and the video game started again. Steve just shook his head and a small smile spread over his face or hearing her talk.

After a minute or so he could hear Tony enter the room again, as well as a very soft 'shh' from door before walking towards the couch. Steve smiled a little wider and turned his head towards Tony. "Can I open my eyes now, Tony?"

"Not yet. Just a second." He stopped in front of Steve, very close, but he didn't say or do anything. He opened his mouth to ask about it, when he felt something warm and wet stroke over his face. He flinched and drew back, blinking as he opened his eyes.

Tony was standing in front of the couch where Steve sat with a brown and white puppy in his arms. It was a rather big puppy, maybe around a year old, tongue hanging out of its open mouth and big brown eyes.

Steve felt his heart melt and a big, wide smile spread over his face as he reached out his hands and started to pet the dog and in turn it started to lick him everywhere it could reach, hands and arms and face.

"Hi puppy. Hi buddy, hi." Tony smiled and placed the dog down on Steve's lap, and it immediately got up in Steve's face and licked him in the face, the neck and everywhere it could reach, with the bushy tail wagging back and forth, making it almost look like a propeller.

Steve could barely talk around the puppy and the licking, but he managed to grab its squirming body and lifted it down on the floor before sitting down in front of it, petting and scratching behind ears and on the belly and everywhere else.

"Hi, hi Bubba. Hi Bubba, are you a good boy? Yeah, you're such a good boy." The dog barked happily and started circle Steve, almost tripping over its own paws, but the tail was still wagging and it looked like it was smiling widely, the tongue still hanging out of the side of its mouth.

"So I take it you like him?" He looked up at Tony, who was smiling widely and looked very pleased with himself as he looked down at Steve and the dog. Steve smiled widely and scratched the dog behind the ears.

"He's wonderful! Where did you find him?" Tony's smile softened and kneeled down beside him on the floor, patting the dog on the head.

"At an animal shelter here in the city. He had been there for almost a year now, and he was just such a sweetheart that I knew I had to bring him home, that he'd be perfect for you." Wait, what? Steve's head snapped at him.

"What? Tony, you didn't…" Tony snorted and pressed a kiss on Steve's cheek.

"I know you love dogs, I know you've always wanted a dog, so I thought it would be the perfect birthday gift for you." And oh God, how could Steve have been so lucky to find a man like Tony? The love and affection he had for this man almost made his heart burst and he surged forward and kissed him, hard and a bit clumsily, wrapping his arms around his waist.

His voice was a little hoarse when he finally pulled away. "I love you so much, Tony." He looked over at the puppy, which was running around them with the tail wagging like crazy. "And I love him. He's perfect. Aren't you boy?" The puppy turned to him when Steve addressed him and tried to pounce on him, his paws on his shoulders and licking him again.

He heard Clint snort somewhere around him. "Looks like you've got yourself a new best friend, Cap. Tony might actually have to fight him for your attention." Steve couldn't answer; he just laughed and scratched the puppy over the back.

"Nah, he'll have to learn to share, just like everyone else. I'm not sharing him with anyone else and he knows it." Tony smiled fondly at him, a small blush covering his cheeks. Steve just smirked. "And I'm sure Tony can learn to share too. He's such a good boy." Tony fond smile turned into a mock scowl and he smacked Steve on the shoulder, which just made Steve laugh.

"Indeed, a mighty beast worthy of the great Captain." Thor rumbled from his spot by the couch, having taken a small break in the video game playing to take a look at the newest family member. Natasha didn't say much, but she smiled wryly at the dog and Steve and Tony before she went back to her nails. Sam came up to them, knelt down beside the dog and started to pet him and scratch him behind the ears.

"What's his name?" He asked and smiled as the puppy licked his hand and smiled his doggy smile at him. Tony just smiled at Steve and bumped him in the shoulder with his own.

"Ask Cap. It's his dog, ergo his decision." Steve grinned at Tony and then down at his dog, which had turned his attention on Sam and was now licking his hands and face and wagging his tail so hard it now looked like he would fall over soon.

"Hm, tricky. I'll have to think about it." He placed an arm around Tony, pulling him close and pressing a kiss on Tony's head. Tony smiled and rested his head on Steve's shoulder, kissing him on the collarbone and his throat. Steve rested his head against Tony's and looked over his dog.

It was not a big dog and once full-grown would probably be medium-sized dog. But he was clearly full of energy and would be great to take out into Central Park for walks, when he went for a run in the mornings or just to play Frisbee or fetch with. He also seemed to love people, which was great since the tower was never empty and getting along with his friends and his husband was vital. Though he was still a puppy and acted much like puppies do, Steve had no doubts that he would be a very, very good dog.

Tony looked up from his neck and smiled coyly at him. "Oh, and uh, I may have broken the present rule just a teensy bit."

Steve raised an eyebrow at him. "How much is 'just a teensy bit?'" Tony shrugged and smiled innocently. Well, he probably tried to look innocent but he mostly looked like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Well, see, Dodger was already pretty cheap because he'd been there for so long and they really wanted someone to take him and give him a nice home. So, yeah, I spent the 100$ on getting him, but I figured you might have wanted a collar and a leash, a bowl and some toys and food and stuff. So, yeah, it cost a little bit more than 100$ to get him."

Steve looked down at his husband, then over at his dog, which was now playing with Sam, who had produced a small rubber ball from somewhere and was throwing it around the room for the puppy to chase after. He smiled fondly and kissed Tony on the forehead.

"I think I'll allow that. Just this once." Tony huffed a small laugh and rested his head in the crock of Steve's neck. Then Steve blinked and looked down at Tony. "Wait. Dodger?" Tony looked up and nodded.

"Yeah, that was they called him at the shelter. But I figured I'd give you the chance to give him whatever name you wanted. Just 'cause I like ya." Steve smirked and then looked back at his puppy again. Just then, Sam threw the ball and it accidently ended up in Steve's lap, so Dodger came flying at him and crashed his muzzle into his lap before grabbing the ball again and lifting his head up, panting heavily and then dropping the ball back in Steve's lap. It was warm dripping droll with a dark spot forming on Steve's pants. But he just laughed and scratched the dog behind the ear.

"Nah, I like it. Dodger is perfect."

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**A/N: Okay, I admit it. I got a lot of inspiration from a chapter from nasa's grab bag fics where Tony gives Dodger to Steve as a birthday gift for his 100th birthday. I couldn't help it; it's such an adorable concept! Though I will say she probably did it better. **

**Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading! Let me know if you want to read more about Dodger in the future!**


	8. Young, Stupid, Broke and Happy

Young, Stupid, Broke and Ridiculously Happy

**A/N: New story finally up! I am a sucker for these kind of fics with reunions after working in the military and coming back to their loved ones. Also I have wanted to write a proposal fic too, so two birds with one stone, right? **

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**Prompt: "When I picture myself happy… it's with you."**

Tony sighed for the umpteenth time in the last fifteen minutes and looked down at his watch again. 17:18. A minute had passed since the last time he looked at it. He sighed again and took a sip of his coffee. It was his third cup of coffee and the barista had looked at him a little funny when he had come back for the third time for another one, but Tony just couldn't bring himself to care. He'd been waiting for hours now and the coffee help his worry, if only a little.

The waiting had already been unbearable ever since Steve had left for 9 months; he had to make it worse by being late? And it wouldn't be so bad if he was only a few minutes late, like ten minutes or so, and that was including the time it took to get off the plane, get through the arrival terminal and getting his bags. But he was almost thirty-seven minutes late by now and Tony was really getting antsier by the minute.

Sigh and groan.

Another sip of coffee.

Tony had always been told he needed to work on his patience, but considering Tony had been waiting for 10 months for this day to come, dragging it out like this felt really unnecessary, not to mention unbearable. And maybe it was the caffeine or his own inability to stay still for more than a few seconds at a time or a combination of the two, but he was practically vibrating in place and had to fight against himself so wouldn't start jumping around or run back and forth between here and the gate or something else that would make him like stupid.

Steve had promised that this would be the last time. "One last tour, Tony. One last tour and then I'm here to stay. I promise, just give me these last 10 months and then I'm all yours. I'll leave the army forever and we'll build a life and home together. I give you my word."

Tony had of course not liked this. How could he? Another ten months of his boyfriend putting himself in danger and possibly dying in some morgue in Syria, yeah wasn't that the dream of every young man in the world? But of course he'd eventually been forced to accept it all and had driven Steve to the airport a few weeks later, followed him to the security check and hugged and kissed him goodbye. It had taken all of Tony's strength not to break down into a sobbing mess on the floor when Steve had placed his dog tags around Tony's neck, like he always did before leaving for a tour, and had given him one last kiss before leaving and disappearing into the crowd, leaving Tony to drive home to an empty apartment.

The first few weeks had been torture and had spent a lot of time in bed, on the couch watching TV or sleeping through his classes at MIT. But eventually he'd been forced to get off his ass and get his life back on track. He went to his classes, got his second PhD at MIT and started to work on getting a third one while also working his part-time job as a car mechanic. He hung out with his friends one occasion, as they graduated all college and started to live their own busy adult lives. He hung out with Rhodey and helped him pick out an engagement ring for Carol and eventually try to propose (she totally beat him to it!), he, Clint, Rhodey, Sam and Thor had their Guys' Night once a week, either getting drinks at a bar or went bowling or whatever and he bonded with Natasha over having your boyfriend overseas while they were stuck at home not knowing what was happening to their significant other. Though Tony couldn't help but feel jealous of her, since Bucky was still home had already left the army on account of his amputated arm from his last tour.

The months did pass, if slowly, and he did receive letters from Steve- he was old-fashioned like that- telling him what was going on (as much as he could, anyway) and reassuring him that he was alright and everything was going well. He would tell him how much he loved and missed him, how he couldn't wait to see him and would give little details or ideas for the future they wanted together.

_'We'd have to take simple jobs for while, obviously, but when we get enough money, we'll move back to New York. Both of us are born and bred New Yorkers, we both love it there and we could have a really nice- though probably small- apartment in our city.'_

_'Imagine a view over Central Park. Obviously that would be years away, even with the best of jobs to offer for kids like us. But a nice penthouse in with view like that, wouldn't that be something?'_

_'How would you feel about getting a dog? Or maybe a cat? I know we haven't talked much about pets, but I have always wanted a dog, so how would you feel about it?'_

_'I know I've said it like a thousand times, but God I really want to marry you someday. And I know we don't have a lot of money right now, but once we do, I'd love to marry you. We'll have a great wedding and we'll invite all our friends and family and have a great time. But I really just want to spend the rest of my life with you.'_

Tony smiled, just a tad dopily, in the middle of the busy, crowded airport just thinking about those letters with his hand tightly clenching the dog tags around his neck. Steve always had that effect on him, with all his sappiness and lovey-dovey words and promises. And for all of Tony's big talk of how ridiculous and overly sappy he was and how he needed to stop being so sappy, he really loved it. Maybe it was because of the lack of love his family had showed him over the course of his life, but Steve had always found ways to get through Tony's tough exterior and the walls he surrounded his heart with, even back when they had first met in grade school and especially after they had started dating in high school.

He had dated other people before Steve, of course he had, but no one had been like Steve. Steve, who was loving, caring and kind and the sweetest and most amazing man on the planet. Steve, who was honest and sincere utterly devoted to Tony and making sure he was happy, either by making Tony coffee every morning before he went to class or making sure he ate and slept somewhat regularly. Steve, who told Tony he loved him every single day and kissed Tony good morning and good night.

Steve had been everything he ever wanted in a boyfriend and more; he was kind and caring, funny, witty and always seemed to be able to make Tony smile. He was one of the few people in the world that could out-stubborn him and wasn't not afraid to call him on his bullshit or get into arguments- both light-hearted ones and more serious ones- with him and refuse to back down before Tony did or before one of them made a good enough point to prove that the other was wrong. He was also always there to ground Tony whenever he was getting lost in work or just needed to get his head out of his crazy ideas and reined him in when he was being reckless.

And while Steve had started out being skinny and shorter than Tony, he eventually hit a major growth spurt and shot past Tony and grew muscles in places Tony didn't know _had_ muscles, which not only made him very attractive (not that Tony hadn't thought he was before, but c'mon, the guy had serious abs and muscles) but also developed a protective streak and would stand up to anyone who tried to hurt or bully Tony. Steve had always been an amazing friend, one of Tony's best friends ever, but after having asked him out and eventually confessed his feelings, he had become the kind of boyfriend that only seemed to exist in those 'Relationship Goals' posts he saw on Instagram. But as sappy and lovey-dovey as Steve was, Tony had fallen head over heels in love with him and knew he never wanted to let go of him.

Howard had blown a gasket over Tony falling for the 'broke, lowly nobody from Brooklyn' he had met in grade school and that had been the point where he really wanted to disown Tony, which he eventually did once Tony went to college, moved into a small apartment with Steve and made it very clear he wasn't going to do whatever Howard wanted him to do with his life, i.e. take over Stark Industries and make weapons like him. Tony, however, had never let that bother him too much. He was young and in love and who was Howard to tell him to live his life anyway? Steve was the best thing that had ever happened to him and Tony would be the biggest moron on this side of the universe if he ever let him go. Jarvis had told him on the day he had graduated college, after Steve had hugged him and kissed him and told him how proud he was of him, that _"finding someone as loving, devoted and loyal this is a rare, once in a blue moon occurrence, especially at your age. Don't waste it, Young sir."_ And it was a piece of advice that he was very happy to follow, even three years later.

Tony smiled again, his eyes getting a little wet with emotion and still clutching those dog tags very tightly, when a voice broke through his thoughts, making his head jerk up and his breath got stuck in his throat.

"Tony!"

Finally.

Steve was coming in through the gates, running as fast as he could with all the people around him, more or less shoving people aside when he couldn't run around them. He was looking around the airport, clearly looking for someone; his face was a mix of eager impatience and held back anticipation.

"Tony!"

Steve. Steve was here, alive and whole and all right.

He was finally home.

Tony was running before he even fully realized he was moving at all. He bumped into some guy, the half-full take-away cup of coffee flying out of his hand and onto the floor and he almost slipped in the puddle of coffee as he ran faster. He heard somewhere behind him someone yelling at him for making a mess, but he couldn't care less, because Steve was home and he was here, only a few feet away from him and fuck it if Tony was gonna waste another second waiting any longer. He cried out "Steve!" but just that second there was an announcement over the loudspeakers, which kinda drowned out his voice.

Steve must've heard the yell however, or spotted Tony moving, because he finally turned in his direction and the smile that spread across his face threatened to split his face in two. He threw his bags down and started running too and before Tony's brain could fully process it all, he threw his arms around Steve, wrapped his arms tightly around Steve's neck and pressed his face into the crook of his neck, inhaling his scent and letting tears of relief and happiness fall, the weight that he had been carrying around for a whole year now finally lifting and disappearing.

"Steve." He whispered into his boyfriend's neck, only barely keeping his sobs at bay, though when he heard, and felt, that Steve was also struggling to hold back his own tears it felt a little easier to release them.

"Tony." Steve whispered back into Tony's hair, his grip around Tony tightening and Tony gasped a little when he was suddenly lifted of floor and spun around like a girl in a romantic movie. He tightened his grip around Steve as he was spun around, more out of instinct than anything else, but whatever. The closer he could be to Steve right now the better.

"You're here. You're home. Oh my god, Steve, I've missed you so much!" Tony could barely speak through the tears and sobs, but he managed to rein them in enough to be at least somewhat understood while still crying. Though, given how Steve was shaking about as much as Tony was at the moment, he probably couldn't talk much more than Tony at the moment.

Steve drew a shaky breath and sniffled loudly before finally talking. "Yeah, I'm here now. I'm home, oh Tony, you have no idea how much I've missed you." He gently put Tony back down on the ground but pressed him close up to his chest, burying his face in Tony's hair.

Tony sniffed and nuzzled his face into Steve's shirt, wiping tears and snot on the fabric and finding himself unable to care in the slightest. "I'm not letting you leave again. You're not gonna go anywhere near that shit again, you're gonna stay right here with me forever from now on, do you hear me? That's not a suggestion, it's an order Soldier."

Steve huffed a wet laugh and pressed his cheek against Tony's head, his arms tightening around him, so much that it kinda hurt and made it a little hard to breathe. But, again, whatever, Tony could take it. He and Steve hadn't seen each other for a whole year; he would take it all the attention and love Steve had to give him.

"Well, I guess I have my orders, General Stark. And trust me, I have no intentions of ever letting you go, ever again. I thought I made that clear when we were still in high school."

Tony chuckled and pressed a kiss on Steve's throat before gently pulling away to get a better look of him. Steve tried to keep him close, gently trying to push him back into his chest, but Tony eventually managed to pull back enough to get a good look of his boyfriend.

Steve was dressed in his army uniform, sans the hat, his blonde hair was a shaggy and messy and he had grown a scruffy beard in the time he had been gone. He had no visible injuries, bruises or abrasions on his person and though he looked a bit skinner than he had been since Tony last saw him, he looked fairly alright considering the circumstances, aside from his eyes and face being wet and red with tears.

Tony smiled widely and raised his hands to Steve's face, gently stroking the apples of his cheeks and tried to wipe away his tears- though that turned out to be rather futile as more tears just kept coming anyway- which made Steve's smile widen back at him and put his own hands over Tony's as he leaned into his touch, squeezing them tightly and pressing them to his face.

It almost looked like Steve was trying to convince himself that he was finally home and with his boyfriend again just as much as Tony was.

Tony chuckled softy, stood on his toes to kiss Steve's nose and then buried his fingers in Steve's beard. "Okay, some real talk here, babe, what the hell is this? Do they not let you shave in Syria? Or are we trying to be the next Robinson Crusoe?"

Steve laughed softly and squeezed Tony's wrists, blinking away the remaining tears from his eyes. "No, no, they do. I guess I've just been busy thinking about other stuff to bother with things like shaving."

Tony smiled teasingly at him with a raised eyebrow. "Oh yeah? Like what?"

Steve smiled down at him with such adoration and unquestionable love that it made Tony's stomach drop and his heart stutter and he almost teared up again. He gently let go of Tony's wrists and reached out one hand towards Tony's face, gently stroking his knuckles over his cheek and wiping a tear away with his thumb.

"Making it home to you." He placed a kiss on Tony's forehead. "I meant what I said before, you know. I'm here to stay, Tony, for as long as you'll have me. You have to know that I adore you and I want to spend forever with you. I'm done leaving you behind for these missions, I promise. From today, I'm done. It'll be just you and me from now on, if you'll have me."

_"Of course I'll have you. I love you more than anything in my life."_ Tony wanted to say, but he couldn't get the words out. His tongue was frozen in his mouth and he couldn't get it to work for him.

Steve continued with a soft smile, but he also looked… well, kinda emotional. He let go of Tony's face and took his hands, holding them tightly. "Tony, you know I mean it, right? I adore you, Tony. I love everything about you and don't ever want us to be apart for this long ever again."

He paused and looked down at the floor, suddenly looking smaller and not quite as confident as he usually did.

"I know my degree doesn't count for much. There's limited jobs for people with an Art's Degree and I don't have much as it is. I have absolutely nothing to offer you that is up to the standards that you are used to, but if you let me, I'll do everything I can make sure to treat you to everything I can, especially after everything I've put you through with my tours and work in the army. Not to mention how your asshole father has treated you throughout your life. You deserve to be treated like a prince and I'll dedicate my life to make sure you get everything you deserve."

"Steve…" Tony's mouth was suddenly dry as a dessert and he could barely move or talk, only stare up at his boyfriend.

Steve smiled and placed one hand over Tony's cheek, stroking his thumb under Tony's eye. "I mean it, sweetheart. You've had such a rough life and you've still turned out an amazing man. You're smart, kind, brave, generous, funny and you've worked so hard to get where you are today and I'm so proud of you and to be your boyfriend. And I know we're young and stupid and just a bit above broke, but I don't care, I want you now and forever. I've thinking a lot of this and whenever I picture myself happy…" He leaned down and pressed a kiss on Tony's mouth. "It's with you."

Tears were falling from Tony's eyes by this point and he was just barely holding back his sobs and his smile was so big it physically hurt. He sniffed and tried to snark back at Steve but it didn't come out quite as snarky as he had wanted and more like a sob.

"Man Rogers, you can't keep giving me this much sap, you'll give me cavities." Not his best line, but it was the best he could deliver considering the circumstances.

Steve chuckled and pressed a kiss to Tony's forehead. "Well, I'll buy you a new toothbrush and toothpaste before we get home then. But before that, I have something I have to ask." He squeezed the hand he was still holding before letting go and taking a small step back.

And then he got down on one knee.

Tony was vaguely aware of gasps of shock and anticipation from the crowd of people around them but he was stuck staring at Steve with wide eyes and his jaw hanging open, his hands flying up to cover his wide open mouth. Steve took out a small, black box from his pocket, popped it open and revealed a ring. It was fairly modest ring, nothing too extravagant or fancy, just simple golden band and a small diamond at the center.

It was the most beautiful ring Tony had ever seen.

Steve smiled widely up at him. "Tony Stark, you are the love of my life and I want you to be my partner in everything. Will you marry me?"

_'Oh my God.'_ That was the only thing going through his mind at the moment. _'He's proposing. He's actually fucking proposing to me!'_

Tony hadn't given marriage too much thought since before dating Steve, and even then it wasn't until their relationship had started to become serious. But after having talked to Steve about it, after having read Steve's letters and how much he loved him and that he really wanted to spend the rest of his earthly days with him.

And God, if it wasn't everything Tony had ever wanted.

Tony was nodding with happy tears running down his face, saying "Yes, yes, yes!" over and over again before running up to Steve and throwing himself around his neck again. Steve wrapped his arms tightly around Tony before lifting him off his feet again and spinning him around. He heard cheers and applause around them, but paid them no heed; the only thing going through his head at the moment was _'Oh My God, Steve Rogers just asked me to fucking marry him!' _

Steve pressed kisses on every inch of skin he could reach, arms tightly wrapped around his waist spinning him around for a good minute before putting Tony down on his feet again, though Tony still had his arms around Steve's neck and Steve placed his hands on his hips. He had a big, blinding smile and tears in his eyes.

He chuckled disbelievingly. "21 years old, son of one of the biggest minds and business men of the last century and has enough brains and passion to revolutionize the world one day, and you'd settle for a broke, art graduate and soldier from Brooklyn? One day you'll have the entire world at your feet, able to take your pick, and you still choose me." He pressed his forehead to Tony's. "You still want me."

Tony tried to smirk, but it looked less cocky and confident and more wide and joyous and tearful. "Steve, babe, two things: First, this is not me 'settling' for you. I have dated several people before you and no one has ever been as good to me as you. Even Pepper, bless her heart, had a rocky time with all of my broken parts and ugly history. Sure, maybe ten years from now I will be successful and rich and have a big house and ten cars or whatever, but no one in the world could ever be better to me than you."

Steve's smile widened and a few more tears fell down his cheek and Tony raised his hands to his face, gently wiping them away. "And two, how long have we been friends? Fifteen years? You have always been the best friend I could ever ask for, even before you asked me on a date, or confessed you loved me. You've looked after me when I was in trouble; let me cry on your shoulder after fights with my dad or when boyfriend or girlfriend turned out to be a bust. And you've always been there for me to rein me in when I get lost in work or school or when I'm just being stupid, when I'm being an asshole or when I just need to get my head out of my ass. You have always been there for me, even before I was a genius and dad tried to exploit it."

Tony smiled and had to clear his throat so his sobs wouldn't make his voice crack. He stroked one hand over Steve's bearded cheek. "So what kind of idiot would I be to let go of the best thing that ever happened to me?"

Steve's eyes were overfilled with tears at this point and Tony pressed a kiss on his nose, leaning in close to his ear. "Now, let's go home. We'll pick up pizza on the way home." He slowly started to pull away, but Steve grabbed his hand before he got too far away.

"Of course, but first," He took the ring out of the box and gently put it on Tony's ring finger. Tony gently pulled his hand out of Steve's grip to get a closer look at it, and now that he wasn't in complete surprise by Steve proposing and he got a closer look at it, he recognized it very quickly.

"Steve, this is your mom's ring!" Steve smiled widely and placed his arms around Tony's waist.

"Yes it is. She gave it to me when I told her I wanted to ask you to marry me. I had to go and have it a bit adjusted so it would fit your finger, but other than that it the exact same ring." He blushed a little and rubbed the back of his head. "I… heh, carried it with me everywhere while in Syria. For motivation, I guess. I figured if I kept carrying it around with me it would help me remember what I had back home. That I had the love of my life waiting for me back home and I really, really wanted to marry him."

Tony smiled and huffed a small laugh, a few tears forming in his eyes before blinking them away. "Yeah? And how did that work for you?"

Steve smirked and shrugged lightly. "I'm here, aren't I? I'd say it worked out just great for me. Especially since I have you know." He placed his arm around Tony's shoulders and hugged him close, letting Tony rest his head in the crook of his neck.

Tony ran a finger over the golden band and the diamond and then looked up at Steve again. He smiled softly at him, and then he smirked and hip checked Steve in the side. "You realize that if dad ever finds out about this he'll skin you alive, chop your balls off and turn them into Christmas ornaments, right? He hates your guts, probably blames you for my decision to turn my back on the company."

Steve smirked back but there was a dangerous fire in his blue eyes. "Yeah I know, but fuck Howard Stark, I'm not afraid of him. If he has anything to say about our engagement or relationship he can say it to my face. If he has the balls that is."

Steve smiled and his eyes softened, placing both hands on Tony's shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes, his eyes are full of sincerity and love. "Tony, you shouldn't think too much about Howard and what he'll think. I have never cared about his opinion; I hate him just as much as he hates me. But I love you and I want you, and if that means I have to deal with him being a dick about it, I'll gladly deal with that." He lifted one hand and stroke it over Tony's cheek. "I love you enough to handle anything. I've seen war at this point, I doubt there's anything Howard Stark can say or do to keep us apart or make me stop loving you."

Tony's mouth was open, eyes wide and started to fill with tears again, but he started to blink, hoping to kill them before they could fall and he chuckled. "Fuck you, Rogers. You've made me cry like five times in less than thirty minutes today, you fucking asshole. I should give you the ring right back for making me this emotional today, you know I hate feelings."

Steve laughed fondly and gently stroke his hand through Tony's hair, pressing a light kiss to his temple. "Oh? Well, I guess I'll have to change your mind then. How about I buy us some dinner, you pick a movie and we'll have a nice long night together. And over the weekend, we'll have some fun. You choose what we do, for the whole weekend, no work or anything like that. Just you and me, what do you say?"

Tony smiled teasingly and bumped his shoulder against Steve's arm. "Well, I guess that's a good start."

Steve smirked and then crouched down a little, one arm around Tony's shoulders, but when he tried to place his arm around the back of Tony's knees, Tony stepped away and smiled.

"Uh, not that I'm against what you're thinking at the moment, but don't you think you need both hands for your bags?" Steve blinked, a bit surprised and looked back over his shoulders at the bags he had dumped on the floor. Then he looked back at Tony and then he stubbornly set his jaw and a determined look formed on his face and he quickly stomped over to the bags. He swung one of them across his back and then walked over to Tony with the other bag, a slightly smaller duffle bag, and had a mischievous spark in his eyes and dumped it in Tony's arms.

"Hey, hold this for me, doll?" Tony took the bag, a bit surprised, but before he could respond, Steve grabbed him around the shoulders and knees again and swept him in his arms. Tony gasped a little and clutched the bag tightly to his chest (it wasn't heavy, probably just some clothes and personal items) before laughing and hiding his face in Steve's neck as he started to walk towards the doors.

"Steve, people are looking!" Not that Tony actually minded that people looked, they could stare all they wanted for all he cared, but he still couldn't help flushing at Steve's very open affections for him. PDA got nothing on Steve Rogers.

Steve grinned and rested his cheek against Tony's hair, pressing a kiss against his forehead. His grip around Tony tightened slightly and adjusted his grip a little, so Tony could rest his head against his shoulder. "Let them look. I have been waiting to hold you and kiss you again for ten fucking months, so you're crazy if you think I'm letting you go ever again."

Tony shook his head with a small laugh before letting himself relax and rest against Steve's body, pressing his lips to Steve's neck. He suddenly felt drained of all energy after all the emotion that he'd gone through just now and was now more than okay with Steve carrying him out of the airport and to the car so they could go home.

They'd probably stop by the pizza place on the way home, or they'd order for delivery when they got home. They'd pick a movie to watch while eating but eventually start to pay more attention to each other than the movie. Steve would pull him close and hold him throughout the whole night, even when they would need to go to bed. Tony would cling onto Steve too, making sure to himself that he was actually home and this wasn't some kind of dream. He'd probably finger on the engagement ring on his finger to make sure that was real too, because it still felt like a dream.

The whole weekend would probably be much of the same, but really, Tony was more than fine with that. Steve was here too stay forever now, away from the army and had asked him to marry him.

They could spare a few days to celebrate this before going back to real life.

Tony sighed and nuzzled his face into Steve's shoulder, closing his eyes. "I love you."

He didn't see Steve's face but he heard him chuckle fondly and held him a little tighter and kissed his hair. "I love you too, Tony."

* * *

**A/N: Aw, so much fluff and cuteness, I die!**

**Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading! **


	9. I'll Gladly Let You Buy Me A Coffee

I've Sworn Of Dating (But I'll Gladly Let You Buy Me A Coffee)

**A/N: Oh My God, the feedback from my last story has been crazy. The amount of views and kudos in such a short amount of time is insane. Thank you so much for your kudos, bookmarks and everything. Really, it means so much to me that you like it.**

**And wow, this one just ran away from me. I didn't plan on it being this long, but here we are at almost 10,000 words for a fic. It's a bit impressive for me, since it's a fic and not a chapter for one. **

**Also, this is my first with an open/ambiguous ending so I might make a sequel for this. **

* * *

**Prompt: "That's irrational."**

"You know I really hate you for this."

"Don't really see why, you need a break from your workshop anyway. And maybe get around some people while you're at it."

Tony rolled his eyes at his best friend and took a sip of his soda. Ugh, being social was so overrated. Why couldn't Rhodey see that Tony was fine being on his own like this? Sure, he really liked to hang out with his friends, but he also really liked his alone time too. Was that really so hard to understand?

And, okay fine, maybe Tony had been spending a bit more time by himself these last month, but so what? He'd had inventing sprees before and he'd been fine before. He had JARVIS who could order meals for him and Dum-E would make him smoothies or coffee and there was a couch there too in case he needed a nap. What more did he really need?

Rhodey took a bite of his burger, never once breaking eye contact with the stubborn genius. "Look, Tones, can I be real here for a sec?"

Tony shook his head. "I'd really rather if you didn't, Platypus."

Rhodey ignored him. "You've completely locked yourself away! I mean, it's one thing when you're wrapped up in your work and just forgets about everything around you-"

Tony scoffed and rolled his eyes. "And what makes you so sure that I'm not? I will have you know that I am so close to figuring out how to get my arc reactor technology to work for larger projects! Like, buildings and entire power grids! If I crack that, if would mean a whole new field in Green Technology and Stark Industries could go entirely green and ecofriendly, not to mention how many people would-"

Rhodey sighed and waved a hand at him, cutting him off mid-sentence. "Yes, yes and that's all really great, you know I think it is. But the point is that I've barely seen you for almost a year, and closing yourself off like this and avoiding all human contact is just not good for anyone. And, to be honest, I'm worried about you."

Tony waved a hand dismissively at his friend. "Oh you're such a worrywart, Honeybear. I'm fine and you know it. I'm like a cockroach, I'm impossible to kill and I always make it out alright."

Rhodey rolled his eyes and rested his chin in his hand, his elbow resting on the table. "Yeah, because me or Pepper drag you out of there, making you eat and sleep before you crash."

Tony froze in his seat, for just one second reminded of why he had been locking himself away for a month. But he had long since perfected the art of not showing himself weak or at a loss, and so put on his usual, charismatic smile and hoped that Rhodey hadn't caught that small moment of weakness.

"I am wounded, Rhodey! How can you have such little trust in me, after all that we've been through together, our years at MIT-"

Rhodey cut him off again. "Yeah, those years at MIT are exactly why I don't trust you to take care of yourself. You are many things Tony; smart, resourceful, funny and a very good friend, but you have the self preservation of a banana fly."

Tony placed a hand over his heart and gasped in mock hurt. "Honeybear, how can you talk about me like that, I thought we had something special."

Rhodey smirked teasingly at him and munched on a few fries.

Rhodey had dragged him out to a local diner and forced him to have lunch with him, after having been in the workshop without break for almost a whole week. Tony had put up a fight, as much as he could against Rhodey's superior strength, and whined and complained and made himself as obnoxious as possible so Rhodey would think he was too annoying, drop it and leave him alone to work in peace.

It hadn't worked, obviously.

But Tony knew his best friend, just like Rhodey knew him too well. Rhodey had something else he wanted to say or talk about, and Tony had a feeling he knew what it was, but he wasn't ready to talk about that. Not yet, and probably not ever.

But of course, Rhodey wasn't one to avoid tough topics, at least as far as Tony was concerned, so when he cleared his throat pointedly, Tony knew what was coming.

"So… I thought about going out tonight; maybe get a few drinks and dance with Carol. You wanna come along? We'd both love to hang out with you, you know, it's been forever." Tony rolled his eyes with a low groan._ 'Here we go again.'_ But still, there was a small chance that he could get Rhodey to drop the subject, so he tried to look as flippant as he could.

"Oh yeah, I love being the third wheel to my best friend and his girlfriend when they go out to drink and dance on a Saturday night. Gee Rhodey, it's like you know me inside out."

Rhodey smiled weakly, though it was probably supposed to look relax and spontaneous. Like Tony was supposed to believe that this was something he had come up with on the spot.

"Well, I'm sure we could find a date for you too if that's a problem. I mean, you're great at attracting handsome men and beautiful women; you're downright charming when you want to be. In fact, I already know this girl; she's one of Carol's friends and is going to law school. She's really cute and-"

_'Oh my God, really? Are we doing this?'_ Tony rolled his eyes and shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. He knew that this would come up sooner or later, but God, why couldn't it have waited a little? Or never.

He groaned and looked up at his friend, trying his hardest to be patient. "Rhodey, I told you I'm not dating anymore. It's clearly not working out for me."

"You've been with plenty of men and women before! What's that they call you, 'Genius, _Playboy_ Philanthropist?' It's not like you've never hooked up with anyone before, so what's the problem now?"

Tony shrugged and took another sip of his soda. "Yeah but 'hooking up' and 'dating' are two very different thing. I can handle casual sex just fine, so long as we're both aware that's what we're doing and there are no strings attached to anything, then it's all fine and good. But I'm done with dating other people. Casual sex is fine but no dating, no tying myself up to one person, no love."

Rhodey looked at him incredulously. "You cannot be serious, Tony. You can't give up on finding love because one relationship didn't work out, that's irrational. What are you afraid of?"

Tony stared at him for a second, then sighed and looked him straight in the eyes. _'Fine then. If you want to go there Rhodey, fine, we'll go there!'_

"Oh, you think this is all about Pepper? You think that I'm so torn up about her that I'm swearing off dating? Oh-ho no, no I can handle one relationship not going the way I want them too. But it's not just her; it's literally _every single relationship I've ever tried with anyone_! They always turn out to be assholes, bitches or some poor soul who can't handle me and all my broken parts and bad history. No one I date ever sticks around for me or want me for who I am, Rhodey. So why bother?

Rhodey suddenly looked at all sympathetically, a rather pityingly, which made Tony even more mad. He didn't want Rhodey's pity; he just wanted to drop it all.

"Aw, come on Tony, you shouldn't let those assholes control your lives like that. You deserve to find love just as much as anyone else in the world, you shouldn't let a few bad apples spoil the batch for you."

Tony rolled his eyes again. He knew Rhodey cared and was just looking after him like the good friend he was, but the whole thing about dating had been really soured after so many bad attempts at find real love.

Emma Frost had been nice at first but eventually it became clear that she only liked him because of his money. And she was also from a wealthy family, and he had heard her talking shit about him behind his back, like mocking his mental health, his heart condition or his trust issues or daddy issues.

Adrian Killian had been very interested, almost obsessed with him for a while, and Tony was so starved for some kind of positive attention from someone other than his friends. But then Tony introduced him to Pepper and Rhodey, and Killian had suddenly started to obsess over Pepper and had left Tony in the dust and tried to flirt with her instead.

She had turned him down several times, of course, but still. Not a great feeling when your boyfriend starts mooning over your best friend.

Christine Everhart had also seemed interested at first, but once he started to open up to her and tell her more personal stuff, stuff about other dates and how he'd felt hurt by how most of them had turned out, she had run to the School Papers and written a story about it, as well as other secrets he had told her. Then she'd dumped him for being upset about it.

Justin Hammer had just been a dick that was trying to find ways to beat him by trying to be smarter or better at inventing and building things, which hadn't hurt so much because he'd gotten the hint that Justin was a pathetic little bitch and had broken it off very quickly.

Sunset Bain had been manipulative and leeched of his money, asking for expensive dates and gifts and what-have-you despite not exactly being poor herself, just like Emma. And it had been revealed that she had been trying to steal blueprints and secrets from Stark Industries through him for her father, which she had succeeded at in the end. Jesus, he would never forget how mad Howard had been at him for that, or the beating it got him.

Tiberius Stone had been forceful and abusive and had pushed Tony into sex before he had been ready, and it also hadn't helped that he was a few years older than Tony so it had before he had been old enough to 'consent' to it. While it hadn't been rape, it was still too close for comfort, since Tony had more or less agreed so he would stop demanding or guilt trip him into doing as he wanted. After that incident Tony had overheard Ty making jokes about the whole thing and how _'Stark had cried like a bitch over it the whole thing, like sex is a big fucking deal'_ and that _'he should be glad to lose his virginity to someone like him since no one else would want to'_, and he had broken up with him on the spot. Well, after he had hacked into the school's computers and ruined his grades, outed him as a rapist to every one who's opinion mattered and let Rhodey, and Pepper have their way with him. He hadn't really given his consent for the last one, but the information had made its way to him anyway and despite all of them getting detention for it, he felt good knowing his friends had his back.

And while Pepper was the first person he dated that wasn't an asshole or a bitch, it had just been made very clear that they weren't working out as a couple and worked better as friends, which they still were to this day. And it really said something about Tony's ability to judge people that Pepper- for a short time- was the only person he had dated that wasn't abusive or wanted stuff from him. Really, it seemed like Tony was a magnet for assholes, bitches and crazy people. Oh well, Tony guessed it was the price he had to pay to be awesome and from a rich and successful family.

So that's seven. _Seven_ attempted relationships that had all turned out bad, stretching all the way back from high school and all the way up till after he had graduated college. How is that even _possible_?!

Well, okay, Tony knew why. It was because he was Tony Stark: son of the Great Howard Stark, one of the biggest and richest men in the world and the greatest weapons builder, genius and businessman of his generation. And Tony had also built himself up as a genius and a handsome, charming and successful young man and was just building up his own future with his own company, focusing on creating new technology or things that might help people, like advanced prosthetics, his arc reactors that would change the world in the fields of green energy, programs that might help people work through trauma or bad memories or mental health.

So yeah, Tony knew he was successful and on the way making a big, strong name for himself as CEO of Stark Solutions, especially for a guy who hadn't even hit twenty-five yet. But as a rich, handsome, intelligent and famous guy, it was only natural people would try to take advantage of to get their own fifteen minutes of fame.

But still, falling for it _seven_ _times_? That is _beyond_ pathetic.

Well, maybe six, since Pepper had never been that bad. But to try so many relationships and have them all blow up in his face again and again? To give his heart to someone else only to have it stomped on time and time again and be told that he wasn't good enough or that was a wreck, or a wimp or whatever. To let someone in only to have them hurt him in the worst possible way?

He sighed and fought hard against the tears. He couldn't take it one more time. If it happened again, he would probably break beyond repair.

"Look Rhodey, I know you just want me to be happy and all, but I have tried it before, several times only to have my heart stomped on and a knife shoved in my back six out of seven times. Pepper tried her hardest, but it hurt that one of my best and oldest friends couldn't handle my-" His voice cracked and Tony interrupted himself to clear his throat and pull himself together before he started crying or something equally humiliating.

"My issues." He eventually finished, refusing to meet Rhodey's eyes out of shame. He heard a despondent sigh, and then felt an arm around his shoulders as he was suddenly pulled into Rhodey's arms.

"Oh Tony… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to poke at old wounds." Tony nodded but stayed quiet. "It's just… You know I love you, right? You're like a little brother to me Tony and I want you to be happy, and you're not. Not really. I mean, I hardly recognize you anymore. There's very little left of that snarky, passionate little guy that I met that first year at MIT. The kid who was fearless and snarky and driven and wanted to live life to the fullest and wasn't afraid to slip up or crash and burn if it meant learning all he could. It's like you've forgotten how to be… you. And I miss you."

Tony looked away and down at the floor, blinking hard to get rid of the tears.

Rhodey's grip around him tightened slightly and ruffled his hair comfortingly.

"And I'm not saying you need to date to be happy, but it'd be a start, or even an idea. And just because you've had a lot of bad luck with dating before doesn't mean you don't deserve to find someone special."

Tony took a deep, somewhat shaky breath and licked his lips. "I _can't_ Rhodey. I can't do it again." Because how many times can a guy take having his heart broken before it becomes broken beyond repair? How many times can a nice girl or sweet guy turn around and turn out to be a complete asshole on you before you learn to take the hint and realize you can't trust them?

And just how cautious would one have to be with dating anyway? Where did Tony need to draw the line before deciding a second date was okay? How would he know who was decent and who was a sheep in wolf's clothing?

"What do you mean, 'how cautious do you need to be'?" Tony froze. Had he said that out loud? "Look, normally I would be all for being careful with strangers and all, but don't you think you're being just a tiny bit… um, paranoid?"

Tony jerked his head up and away from Rhodey's shoulder and glared at him, no hints of teasing or light fun because this was not something Tony was kidding about. "What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean? What, you think I should _throw_ myself at anyone and just see what happens, _huh_?"

Rhodey's eyes widened and shook his head, clearly realizing his mistake but Tony wasn't about to let it go that easily. "Wha- no, no, that's not what I-" Tony cut him off, growing more and more angry and hurt by the second.

"And paranoid, really? Is it _paranoid_ to be worried who'll lie and manipulate you until all your secrets are out in the open for the world to see or read about? Is it _paranoid_ to be afraid that some other asshole will _abuse_ and use you _sexually_ against your will?" Tony got up from his seat and planted his hands on the table, leaning over Rhodey and staring him down. "Tell you what Rhodey, when _you've_ had _your_ heart stomped on and been used and abused by _every_ single person _you've _dated, _then_ we can chat about being fucking _paranoid_!"

Tony grabbed his bag, threw the few couple of bills he had brought with him on the table to tip the waitress and pay for his half-eaten meal before storming towards the doors of the restaurant and left in a huff, ignoring Rhodey calling after him to _'wait, stop'_ and _'Tony, I didn't mean it like that'_.

* * *

Tony didn't really know this neighborhood very well, it was somewhere in Brooklyn that he had never been in before. But at the moment he wasn't heading anywhere specific, he just stomped down the street, angry and hurt and somewhat betrayed by what Rhodey had said.

_'How dare he call him paranoid? Who is he to tell him how to feel about everything he's been through? He had been there when Tony found out about Sunset's mind games, when Tony called him in the middle of the night, hysteric with tears and asking for a ride home after having been raped by Ty! And he was telling Tony he needed to get over it and get back in the dating game again!'_

Because while Pepper had hurt him badly, however unintentionally, Ty had been the one who had left the deepest scars in him. The guy had acted like he cared so much, had treated Tony like a prince for months, had been sweet and cuddly and strong and protective and made Tony feel so special. Only to become possessive and abusive, had tried to cut Tony off from his friends and eventually push and pressure Tony into sex before he ready.

How do you trust anyone after being used and abused like that?

But deep down, Tony knew that Rhodey was right.

When they had met in college, Tony had been driven and witty and full of energy. He wanted to learn everything and had a thousand ideas for projects and wanted to do everything at once. He had been reckless, fearless and Pepper and Rhodey had been forced to rein him in or carry him home after a party. But with time, slowly but surely Tony started to rein himself and became more and more cautious and introverted. While he remained as charming as ever whenever he needed to be, which was vital when you were business man, he never went out of his way to meet new people unless it was for a quick romp in the sack with no strings attached. Which inevitably led to him getting the title of Playboy and was described as _'not boyfriend material'_ by the Press and Media, but hey, that was just what he wanted so who was he to complain?

Still, he could understand that Rhodey wanted to help him and bring out that old Tony that he knew back in college, but Tony wasn't sure that old Tony was still there. He might have died some time after he had broke up with Ty.

Tony sighed and sat down at a bus stop, resting his head in his hands.

Yeah, he missed those carefree days too. Those days when he had passion and drive and a lust for life. When he had been fearless and outgoing and not burying himself with nothing but work 24/7, which was where the only place he found any engagement or passion in these days.

So he had thriving business and bank account but absolutely nothing else to show for it. No family, no love or affection and little to no friends. And even that wasn't much, since Pepper was an even bigger workaholic than he was and Rhodey was away most of the time with the Air Force. And no one to share his life with.

Oh, how Tony might long for something akin to true love, or at least someone he could share his life with. He had dreams of finding someone, someone who was caring and sweet and honest and who wanted to be with him, not Howard Stark's son or the CEO Stark Solutions or Tony Stark the rich and successful. Someone who loved him for all of his faults and ugly parts and bad history and issues drenched in issues and wanted to stay with him despite of them.

Someone who loved him for him.

But finding someone like that would mean to open himself up to the world again. To show himself vulnerable and naked before someone's judgement again and hope it wouldn't leave him heartbroken again. And that he just couldn't do. Not again.

Because what if they turned out to be another asshole, or gold digger or lying dickface who just wanted to cash in on his money or fame or success? Someone after the things he had to give rather than who he was and what he could give that didn't involve money or fame? And once they had gotten what they wanted, they would leave him broken and hurt once again to lick his wounds and try to piece his heart back together again.

Or worse… what if they were good? What if Tony did meet someone, someone who turned out to be everything he wanted? Someone who was good, who treated him well and made his heart flutter and he could lower his defenses around. What would he do then? Sure, he had been able to do it alright around Pepper, but she had known him since high school, so she didn't count. And even then she hadn't been able to handle all of it anyway, so it's not like it really mattered. But Tony had never had a relationship where he felt like that and it had worked out, so if someone actually did turn out to be good, how would he deal with that? What if that person would make him open himself and he wouldn't be able to close himself off again?

To be really honest that thought scared him way more than the idea of getting his heart broken again. At least that he had learned to deal with well enough at this point, but being loved? Actually, genuinely loved by someone who was better than decent?

Tony shuddered. No, he wouldn't know how to handle that.

A horn honked, loudly and it made Tony jump and look up to see that a bus had stopped in front of him and the driver was glaring at him, annoyed and frustrated and spoke with a thick Brooklyn accent. "'Ey pal, you ridin' or what?"

"Uh, no?" Tony said, more than aback than angry at the attitude he was given. _'It's New York pal, what were you expecting? You've really been locked up in the house for too long.'_ he scolded to himself.

The guy rolled his eyes, muttered "whatever asshole" closed the doors and started to drive off. Tony rolled his eyes too. Seriously what were people's problem? Sure, it New York but was there any need to a jerk every single second of the day?

But the bus made him remember that he needed to find his way back home soon, so he took out his phone to find what buses or subways he needed to take to get back home, when he heard someone running and yelling up the street.

"Hey, wait!" A guy came running down the street, waving and hollering at the bus top stop, only for the driver to ignore him and flip him the bird as he drove away. The guy groaned, frustrated and angry and ran a hand through his hair.

"Ugh, fuckin' asshole! He saw me, he fuckin' saw me an' he snubbed me! This never happen'd in Boston."

_'Hm, so we have a pure-bred Brooklynite here.'_ Tony mused to himself when he heard the guy's accent.

He glanced up from his phone and paused for a second when he got a good look at the guy. And hellooo Adonis, the guy was seriously built, had a body that would make a bodybuilder jealous and beautiful windswept, blonde hair and big, baby blue eyes. He looked hot and yet sweet at the same time, All-American in a way.

He looked so hot!

_'Yeah, so did Tiberius and look how that turned out.'_ That traitorous part of his brain reminded the more lustful part before it could go too crazy and he immediately stomped those feelings down and looked back down to his phone. But he had never quite learned how to turn his mouth off so before he knew it, he said,

"Yeah, I hate it when that happens."

That was a lie. Tony had never been one to ride buses, he'd always been driven somewhere or- after he gotten his license- driven himself wherever he needed or wanted to go. Come to think off it, he'd probably never ridden a bus in his whole life. But it had seemed like a good thing to say.

The guy looked over at him, groaned again and then sat down beside him on the bench and ran his fingers through his blonde hair again. He then looked over at Tony and down at his phone. "You know when the next one comes?"

Tony glanced up from his phone, raised a suspicious eyebrow before looking after at the timetable. "What, you can't read the timetable?" If being a New Yorker meant being a dick to avoid being screwed over was commonplace, might as well act the part. Plus, he probably looked like a rich asshole anyway, with his fancy clothes, shoes and stuff; he might as well make the guy think he was one. Might get him to leave, stay quiet or at least make his brain stop going on about how hot he was.

The guy groaned at him, frustrated, before getting up and looking over the timetable, before groaning again and sat back down. _'So, not good then.'_ Tony mused and smirked a little, hoping the guy didn't see it. _'Sucks to be you.'_

But then again, it wasn't like Tony was in a better place. It was a long way back home from here and he really didn't want to take the bus or subway at this time of day, it would have to be packed. But oh well, that was fine, he would just call a taxi and be home in-

Oh for _fuck's_ sake! Rhodey hadn't given him time to grab his wallet before dragging him out of his workshop and out to lunch, insisting it should be his treat. He had only allowed Tony to change into a clean shirt and nicer jeans and he had only been able to grab a few ten-dollar bills to tip the waiter, which he had already left at the restaurant. So he had no money on him to pay a taxi or even a ticket for the bus or subway.

Wonderful. Fan-fucking-tastic.

_'Guess this is Karma for thinking asshole-things to strangers.'_

Tony resisted the urge to groan or swear out his frustration and started to search through his bag for any bills he might have missed or maybe something he could bribe someone with to get a ride back home. Had Tony been the least bit rational he might have swallowed his pride, called Rhodey, apologize for blowing up at him and ask for a ride home, since he was the one who drove them here. It was what a truly smart person would do.

But Tony wasn't rational and had too much stubborn pride to call his friend and ask for a ride after how he had blown up at him earlier. Also, had already ignored the calls from his friend up till this point, and he wasn't about to answer now only to ask for a ride and admit that storming out of a restaurant and run off in a part of the city that he didn't know very well probably wasn't very smart.

_'No way Jose, that is so not happening. I'ma let him stew a little, let him worry. That'll teach him who's the paranoid one'_

Had Tony mentioned that he probably wasn't very rational?

He sighed and closed his bag. No luck on any bills magically showing up and he hadn't brought anything worth enough to by a ticket with. And he wasn't wearing a watch that he could pawn either. And judging by the map on his phone, it was at least twelve miles from here to his house on Manhattan. Not very long to drive, but pretty long to walk.

_'Oh well, what choice do I have?'_ Tony got up from his seat and started to walk, only for Big, Blonde and Beautiful to call out after him,

"Hey, are you lost?" Tony turned to look over his shoulder at him. He looked a little concerned, any annoyance or frustration he had earlier gone.

Tony rolled his eyes as subtly as he could, turned to him with a smirk that was only a little cold. "Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. What's it to you, pal?" He turned away started to walk again, only to hear him call out again:

"You need directions?" This Tony only looked over his shoulder at him. He had no interest in talking to hot guys at the moment.

"No." Yes. He had his map on his phone, but actual directions might not be so bad at the moment. But, again, Tony wasn't very rational and had a very strong pride and was still pissed from his and Rhodey's talk at the restaurant, so stubbornly kept walking down the street and followed the map.

According to Google, a walk from Brooklyn to Manhattan took about three hours and ten minutes, and Tony had- of course- not taken he best shoes for a long walk today, but if he were lucky maybe he could flirt his way to a ride home when he'd cooled off a little. But he'd barely made it a down the street before he heard someone run after him and for a second he thought Rhodey might caught up with him and was ready to tell him to fuck off, when he heard Mr. Blonde call after him.

"Hey, wait up!" He rolled his eyes. What was this guy's deal, couldn't he take a hint? If Tony wasn't so pissed at the moment, maybe he would be somewhat impressed by this guy's stubbornness, but he was pissed and wasn't in the mood to talk- isn't that a first, he could barely keep quiet when he was alone- so didn't even spare the guy a glance when he caught up with him and started walk beside him.

_'Don't look at him, Tony.'_ He told himself, eyes locked straight ahead and head held high. _'Don't encourage him. Keep your answers short and few and he'll loose interest.'_

"Hey, come on, let me help. I know my way around here, I can give directions if you need it."

"Not interested." Tony said curtly, still not even glancing at the guy.

"Are you sure? I mean, no offense or anything, but you don't exactly look like you're from around here and I thought you might need a little help?"

"No thank you." Tony cursed himself after the words left his lips. _'Don't say thank you, moron! You don't say thank you to someone you want to get rid off. Don't be afraid to be rude to a stranger.'_

Blonde Hercules hesitated and didn't say anything for a minute or so, but he kept following Tony down the street._ 'Fine.'_ Tony thought with a mental shrug. _'Maybe he needs to got his way too or something. Just don't acknowledge him.'_

There were a few minutes of blissful silence- or as quiet as it ever gets in New York- before Adonis looked back at him again. "Where are you going anyway?"

_'What is this guy's deal? Is he blind, deaf and just all-around stupid? Or is he a stalker, or a rapist, waiting for them to come across some dark alley, drag me in there and steal his stuff and have his way with him?'_

_'Well, jokes on him then, I've learned enough self-defense to deal with big boys.' _

"Monte Ne." He said, bordering on snapping at him and still refusing to look at him. But the guy just smiled and chuckled a little.

"Arkansas, huh? Sounds like a long walk." Tony bit his cheek, keeping himself from smiling back at the mildly funny joke, but side-eyed him for a second.

"Yeah, it could take a while, wouldn't want to tire you out so you can leave." He made sure to keep his voice cold and unemotional, hoping he would finally take the hint and leave, but the guy just smiled.

"Well, if you plan on walking all the way to Arkansas, across several states, someone should probably make sure you get there okay, right?"

What the hell?

Tony stopped short and the guy almost tripped over his feet when he tried to stop and take a step at the same time. "Okay, seriously, what is your deal? Can you not take a hint? Leave me _alone_!"

The guy looked a little taken aback by Tony's reaction, but then his eyebrows narrowed slightly and placed his hands on his hips. "Hey, I'm sorry, I'm only trying to help. If you're actually lost-" Tony cut him off.

"I am _not_ lost! I have a map and I can make it home just fine without help, thank you very much. Now kindly fuck off and go harass someone else." With that, Tony turned on his heel and started to walk down the street in a huff.

"You don't have money, do you?" Tony halted and turned to look at him. "I mean, you're dressed nicely and it all looks expensive, but you don't have the money to pay a taxi or a bus? I figured something was up."

Tony eyed suspiciously and raised an eyebrow at his earnest voice. What was this guy's game? He was acting all nice and helpful but people always had some kind of endgame with good deeds. He must be after something, and even if he wasn't, wasn't Not Trusting Strangers something most people teach their kids very early on?

But despite his suspicions Tony found himself nodding and his shoulders slumped a little. "It's been a rough day." It was all he said, but the guy's eyes widened in understanding.

"Yeah, you look it." He stepped up, easy smile and earnest eyes. "Can I treat you to a coffee? You look like you need it."

Tony raised his eyebrow a little higher and crossed his arms over his chest. "Didn't you have some place to be?"

The guy shrugged, his smile widening a little. "Nah, I just wanted to get home from work. But I'm in no real hurry or anything. Come on, what do you say?" Suddenly he looked a little unsure, like he was suddenly worried Tony would yell in his face and storm off again.

Tony considered his offer. He didn't know this guy, had no idea what his intentions were or what he wanted from him, but he also had this air of kindness and seemed to genuinely want to help him. But considering Tony's track record of judging people he probably wasn't the best person to ask.

But he had offered a coffee- Tony's kryptonite- and Tony suddenly felt very drained and tired so maybe a nice free coffee would help a little with his nerves. Plus, the guy was either a good actor or he had no idea who Tony was, so maybe he wasn't after any money and just thought he was a stupid, rich kid who had gotten himself lost in Brooklyn with nothing on him.

Yeah, why not? If only for the free coffee and a chance to cool off a little. He sighed and tried for a very small smile. "Okay."

The guy smiled wider. "Great!" He reached out his hand. "My name is Steve Rogers, by the way."

Tony looked down at his hand, up at him, smiled a little wider and took it. "Tony Stark."

* * *

As it turned out, Steve was surprisingly easy to talk to. After he had brought Tony to this warm, cozy little coffee shop and bought some coffee and a sandwich- Tony had not asked for any food but he had only eaten half a burger and some fries today so he was not going to complain- they had started to talk and Tony had found he was very easy to talk to.

He had told him that he had been out to lunch with a friend until they'd had a fight and he had stormed off in anger, he had realized he'd given the little money he had as pay for his half of the lunch and some tips, leaving him without any means to get home on his own.

Though he left out the part of all his bad relationships.

"I don't know, I guess I'm just being stupid ignoring him like this, but I really, really don't want to talk to him right now. Though I have no way of getting home aside from walking, which is like, three hours away." He sighed and took a sip of his coffee. "Serves me right for being stupid. And impulsive… and stubborn."

Steve smiled wryly and sipped on his own coffee. "Yeah, I admit putting your pride above getting home safely is probably not the smartest thing to do. But I also have a habit of being stubborn so I can't really blame you and I can also understand being mad at a friend for being nosy." He chuckled mirthlessly. "Believe me, I know how you feel."

Tony looked up at him, suddenly curious but stopped himself seconds before asked_. 'Dick move, Tony. You have your personal history, this guy has his.'_

Steve, however, must've seen Tony's curious face and rested his elbows on the table, cradling the cup in both his hands. "I had this girlfriend, until a few months ago. My friends have been on my back for weeks now, trying to make me go out to parties or pubs with them. They say they just want to hang out, but I know they're just gonna try to convince me to start dating again. They just don't get that I'm not ready or up for dating at the moment."

Tony rolled his eyes with a small, humorless chuckle. "You too, huh?"

Steve smiled at him. "I guess it's silly. I mean, it's been months since I broke up with Sharon, but I just don't really feel up for dating. I mean, when you've tried dating for years and every time you try it ends up not working out, you're not exactly in the mood to try again."

Tony snorted and rolled his eyes again. "Tell me about it. I've tried dating so many times and every time I ended up with it blowing up in my face." He froze. What had possessed him to admit that? He'd known this guy for about an hour, why was it so easy to tell him things Rhodey had to pry out of him?

Steve looked up, his turn to look curious. Tony made a face of nonchalance. "Kinda the same story, really. I dated this girl, a long time friend, and it just didn't work out. And after years of relationships not working out, I just don't feel up for it anymore." He shrugged and took a bite of sandwich. "Saves me the heartache."

Steve nodded understandingly and sighed. "Yeah, I get what you mean. Sharon and I have been co-workers for years and I thought we could really work out and be good to each other. For a time I honestly thought _'she's the one! She's the woman I'm going to marry.'_ but then she told me that she didn't see us working out. She told me she had met this girl and more or less realized she was a lesbian and not bisexual like she had thought for a while. I didn't get angry or anything, it's not her fault for realizing her sexuality, but…" He sighed and looked down into his cup. "It still hurts, you know." He both looked and sounded like he was fighting back tears.

Tony looked at him compassionately and wanted to pat him on the shoulder or hand or something, if only to help a little. But he refrained himself from doing so, and instead said, "Yeah, I thought Pepper was The One for me too. We've known each other since forever and she's one of my best friends and a big reason why I'm still alive today. But I think we both realized we were better suited to be friends than boyfriend and girlfriend. She couldn't really handle the stress of my-" He cut himself off. The guy was easy to talk to, sure, but not enough for Tony to be comfortable to share _everything_ with him. Not yet.

So instead he said, "My hobbies." hoping Steve hadn't noticed the small pause. Steve snorted and looked up again.

"Sucks." Then he smiled. "But you're still friends?" Tony nodded with a smile.

"Oh yeah. I was worried we wouldn't be able to stay friends at first, but we both have known each other for so long and cared too much about each other to stop being friends. I have my own company and she's technically my PA, so we see each other almost everyday. We couldn't not stay friends and also work that close to each other. She pretty much runs my life, I couldn't have her quit because of a failed relationship."

Steve nodded understandingly again and rested his head in his hand. "Well, that's good for you. Sharon and I are kinda awkward around each other still. I mean, I have no problems with people being gay or lesbian, I have dated guys before, it's not an issue for me. But I kinda wish we could be friends again."

"Have you tried talking to her about it? I mean, Pepper and I kinda tiptoed around each other before we finally started to talk about it and realized we both still wanted to be friends. Maybe you need to talk to Sharon about it too?"

Steve sighed heavily. "I've tried, but it just never feels like we're on the same page." He chuckled, a bit embarrassed. "I have always been a more confrontational about things and I guess I pushed her a little hard to figure out what she wanted from me. Did she want me to leave or be her friend or what? I think I just ended making her feel really uncomfortable around me."

He chuckled again, this time a bit sadly. "Story of my life I suppose. You make friends, try to take it a step further and when it inevitably turns out to not work out, it's all awkward and you lose a good friend."

Tony shrugged with a wry smirk. "Hey, you should count yourself lucky. Aside from Pepper, everyone I've ever dated has turned out to be assholes. Like, every single one of them."

Steve looked at him skeptically; one eyebrow raised and his mouth a straight line. "Everyone? No way, no one has that much bad luck."

Tony shrugged with a smirk. "I do. Believe me, I do. I swear, I have the worst luck with dating than anyone in the history of dating."

Steve snorted and shook his head. "Trust me, you don't."

_'Challenge accepted.'_

Tony rested his head in both his hands and smirked challengingly at Steve. "Try me."

Steve smirked back with a smile that also said _'Challenge accepted'_ and leaned forward, arms and elbows resting on the table. "Okay, so a few years ago I dated this other girl, Wanda. She was really nice and fun at first and also kinda crazy, but the right kind of crazy. Like, the one who'll do weird stuff and not feel embarrassed about it and can laugh at herself. And she was also caring and sweet and I fell fast for her."

"Then, as we got more and more serious in our relationship, she started to act weird. She'd get clingier and whenever I talked to my friends she would ask about who I was talking to and- because I was openly bisexual- she wouldn't let me hang out with any of my friends unless she came with. And she didn't really like my friends that much. When I went out one day with a few guy friends to have a few beers and watch football at a local bar, she went berserk and tried to drag me back to our apartment and also tried to hit me. That's when I finally decided to dump her and throw her out of my apartment. I knew she had a really rough life with her dad and apparently her twin brother died a few years earlier. I don't like to through around terms like 'mental health' around like that, but think she had abandonment issues or something. I'm glad I got out before it got worse."

Tony covered his mouth to stop himself from snorting and Steve laughed a little at his failed attempts to hide it. "Okay, that's bad, but it's nothing compared to Christine."

"We met in high school and she would act all sweet innocent and like she cared a lot about me. And she managed to weasel into my brain and heart and I told her everything on my heart whenever I felt bad, only for her to write about it in our school paper and would mock all of it openly."

Steve winced and drew back a little. "Ouch. That had to sting." Tony nodded but shrugged nonchalantly.

"I wish I could say I got the satisfaction of dumping her but she beat me to it, when I was still reeling from realizing what she had done. She told me that she wanted a_ 'real man' _and not such an emotional pussy."

Steve's face scrunched up. "Yikes. How old were you?"

Tony bit his lip as he tried to remember. "Um… I dunno, maybe fourteen? I skipped a few grades in high school, so she was sixteen. She was also one of my first 'real' girlfriends so I wasn't exactly well versed in how to deal with these things."

Steve winced again and shook his head, somewhat horrified. "Oh my God, I am _so_ glad to be out of high school. Christ, what a nightmare." Tony laughed.

"Oh yeah. You'd think people would realize that most of people's mental issues come from high school." Steve huffed in agreement, then smirked again.

"So yeah, that was a doozy, but I think I got you beat."

Tony raised his eyebrows in mock skepticism. "Oh you do, do you? Tell me more."

Steve nodded. "I started dating this guy my senior year of high school, Brock Rumlow. We were both on the football team in high school and started going to the same college and we started dating a few months before graduation. I thought he was great and a stand-up guy, but then I learned that he had been a real, big bully back in high school, beat up smaller kids to get them to do their homework and had the gall to act like a great guy in front of teachers. And he kept doing it in college, which really pissed me off as well as broke my heart. So I dumped him, but not before I gave him a piece of my mind." He cracked his knuckles threateningly but also with a glint in his eyes, which made Tony laugh.

"And I'm sure it was a long, serious talk between two mature college students." Steve laughed back at him.

"Of course, what do you take me for? I'm not a brute." Tony chuckled and, in the warm cozy light of the small coffee shop and with this kind and friendly stranger, suddenly all his previous horrible dates just didn't seem so bad as they had when he was alone and wallowed in his self-pity.

So it suddenly felt so easy to say, "I still got you beat. I had a real douchebag of a boyfriend in college. He leeched of my money and more or less manipulated and abused me to get his own way. He dragged me to parties for people way older than me when I was sixteen and he was twenty one, he introduced me to alcohol and pressured me into things that I really didn't want to."

Steve narrowed his eyes, partly suspicious and partly nervous. "What kind of things?" He asked it very warily; like he had an idea that he knew what Tony meant and didn't want to hear the answer.

Tony looked him straight in the eyes, his expression serious and only said, "Things I was legally too young to consent to."

Steve's eyes widened and fell back against the back of his seat, horrified and suddenly pale as a ghost. "Jesus Christ… What an asshole. Did he get caught?"

Tony smirked wickedly. He was blown away by how easy it suddenly was to talk about Ty and actually smile about it, even if it was a wicked one. "Oh yeah. He was outed as a rapist, his grades were ruined and he'll never get anywhere impressive in life due to this information being public." He shook his head with a small smile. "Quite a surprise it happened really, it just came right out of thin air."

Steve smirked back but he still seemed horrified by this information. "Jesus, Mary and Joseph…" He whispered to himself and took a sip of his coffee. He took a deep breath. "Glad to know he got what he deserved." Then he tried to smile.

"But it's nice to know I'm not the only one in the world who's terrible at dates."

Tony barked out a small laugh and raised his coffee mug in a toast. "A toast to the single life. Because what's the use in trying to date if it's just gonna end hurting you in the end?"

Steve's smile widened and tapped his mug against Tony's. "Hear, Hear." They both took a swig of their coffee and shared a laugh over their inability to find good dates. Steve's smile then faded a little and he looked down at the table again.

"I just wish my friends would back off a little. I get that they wanna help me and want to see me happy and all, but if I ever want to meet someone special, date and maybe start a serious relationship with them, I'd want to choose it for myself and not feel pressured into it."

Tony nodded. "Yeah, me too. I know both Rhodey and Pepper want me to be happy, but I just don't want to feel forced to be happy. And to be honest, I just don't seem to understand the whole… love thing. It's just so confusing and unpredictable. Math and science is so much easier to understand."

Steve stared at him like he'd grown a second head. "You're not serious, are you?"

Tony laughed. "No, I am. But what I mean is math, whether you like it or not, have rules to follow and formulas to understand. You learn the rules and formulas and the rest is easy." Steve scoffed and rolled his eyes and Tony smacked him on the arm with a smirk. "Oh shut up, it is. And I work with machines, and they are also easy to figure out. People on the other hand, nevermind love? I just don't get it."

Steve dropped the teasing smile and nodded. "Yeah, I see what you mean. Whenever I've fallen in love I've tried my hardest to please and impress and make my significant other happy, but I probably just ended up looking like an idiot." Tony nodded and drank some more coffee.

"Yeah, that's why I've sworn off dating. At least for the time being. I've tried love and see where it gets me and I've always ended up hurt. I might try it again someday, but for now I'd rather just focus on my work and hanging out with friends and stuff like that. I mean, love is overrated anyway, right?"

Steve smiled. "Totally. I mean, I've been on this earth for twenty-six years and have survived without a boyfriend or girlfriend and the world hasn't ended yet. I figure I'll be alright in the future without one. For now I'm just glad to be rid of the frustrations that love brings."

"You and me both, buddy." Tony smirked and emptied his cup and looked down at his watch. And wow, they'd been talking for hours now. It was getting late and it was probably time to head home soon. And he had an idea that when he looked at his phone it would have been bombarded with missed calls and messages from Rhodey.

Steve looked over at him. "You need to get home?" Tony nodded and started to get up, taking the last of his sandwich and wrapped it up in a few napkins.

"It's getting late. I should probably also call Rhodey and tell him I'm not dead or kidnapped. Plus, it'll get dark soon and I'd rather get home sooner rather than later." Steve nodded and got up too.

"I can wait with you, at least until your friend comes and gets you. You know, just in case." Tony smiled gratefully and they left the coffee shop.

It had, indeed, gotten darker outside and the air was chillier. Tony dialed up Rhodey's number and had to keep it a bit away from his ear when Rhodey picked up and started yelling straight into the phone. _"Where the hell have you been, asshole? I've been worried sick and looking all over for you! You can't just run off like that and not tell me where you're going, especially without money to get back home!"_

Something to remember; Tony hadn't even gotten a chance to say _'Hi'_ yet.

When Rhodey finally calmed down enough to stop yelling, Tony told him where he was and Rhodey quickly said that he was on his way before hanging up without another word.

Steve looked at him warily. "Is your friend very mad?" But Tony just rolled his eyes and shrugged with a smirk.

"Eh, he'll get over it. It's hardly the worst thing I have ever done to worry him. He'll be fine." Steve didn't look entirely convinced, but before he could harp on it, Tony turned to him with a more genuine smile.

"Thank you for this, Steve. It was really nice to vent a little. You're very easy to talk to, you know." Steve's worried frown turned into a genuine smile, the light from the street lamps shining in his eyes.

"Yeah, you too. It's nice to talk to someone who doesn't judge for being bad at dating. Or, just someone new to talk to period." He suddenly looked a bit bashful and looked down at his shoes. "Would you… um, would you like to do it again sometime? I mean, meet up for coffee or something? To talk some more?"

And Oh My God, he looked like such a puppy when he was nervous. Tony smiled and took a small step closer. "Yeah, I'd like that."

Steve's lightened up again. "Yeah? How about this Saturday 2pm?" Tony smile's widened, grabbed the napkin he had wrapped his sandwich and a small pen, scribbled down his number and gave it to Steve.

"It's a non-date then. Text me about a place or where to meet?"

Steve looked down at the napkin in his hand, up at Tony again with wide, round eyes and then smiled teasingly. "So, you'll actually let me call you? You didn't sound to interested earlier today." Tony smirked back and stepped closer.

"It means if you call I might answer. If you're lucky." Steve smiled, then ripped off a piece of the napkin, took Tony's pen and scribbled down a number of his own that he gave to Tony.

"Swell. Text me when you get home, just so I know you're okay?"

'Swell.' How cute is that? How is a guy like this even _real_?

Tony smiled and nodded. "Yes, yes mom. I can even send you a selfie of me in my bedroom if that will calm you." Steve snorted and shook his head amusedly. Then a car drove up and pulled over right by them. Tony sighed and turned to Steve.

"Well, that's my ride. So, I'll see you on Saturday?" Steve nodded and shoved the napkin down into his pocket.

"Sure. Text me later, okay?" Tony nodded and they both jumped a little when Rhodey honked and his rolled his window down.

"Get in Stark, I'm taking you home!" Tony rolled his eyes with a chuckle.

"See you around, Rogers."

Steve smiled. "You too, Stark." He started to walk up the street and Tony opened the door to get in, when he heard Steve called out to him. "And have a great time in Arkansas! I hear it's great this time of year." Then he started running towards the bus stop where they met.

Tony stared after him, a bit surprised, then he laughed softly before getting in Rhodey's car. He heard Rhodey started to lay on him about running off and ignoring calls and who was that guy with you there and what have you been doing this whole time? Bla, bla, bla.

Tony tuned him out almost immediately. He just couldn't stop smiling when he thought about those hours in the coffee shop, the nice talk with Steve and how easy he was to talk to, about how good it felt vent to someone who understood and how there were butterflies in his stomach about seeing him again-

Tony froze in his seat when he realized what had just happened.

"Oh fuck."

* * *

**A/N: And done! Please leave kudos, comment and leave your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


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